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LITTLE ROCK, Ark. — According to reports, four people have died following an overnight structure fire in Little Rock.
The fire reportedly happened around 2:00 a.m. in a home located on Greenfield Drive.
Fire crews responded to the call and during the search of the home, found four people that were dead as a result.
Little Rock police and Little Rock fire crews are reportedly working together on the investigation.
There is no other information at this time, but we will work to provide more information as it becomes available. | https://www.thv11.com/article/news/local/little-rock/four-dead-little-rock-structure-fire/91-d4f06a20-871a-4f40-a353-d23b014c7953 | 2023-06-23T16:07:24 | 1 | https://www.thv11.com/article/news/local/little-rock/four-dead-little-rock-structure-fire/91-d4f06a20-871a-4f40-a353-d23b014c7953 |
SULLIVAN COUNTY, Tenn. (WJHL) – The U.S. Forest Service announced Friday that a Sullivan County road within the Cherokee National Forest will be temporarily closed while contractors make repairs.
NFSR 87, known as Flatwoods Road, was damaged by a flood in 2019, according to a release from the Forest Service.
The road, located in the Watauga Ranger District near the Sullivan/Carter County line, will be closed starting June 30. The closure will stretch from mileposts 6.56 to 12.95, the Forest Service reports.
Visitors hoping to get to Little Oak Campground on NFSR 87G can still access it by taking Camp Tom Hollow Road, and the release states that officials plan to keep access to Old Flatwoods Road open while the repairs are ongoing.
The release states that the repairs will include installing new culverts, replacing surface material and reconditioning the road and ditch.
According to the Forest Service, the repairs to Flatwoods Road are funded by “Emergency Relief for Federally Owned Roads” funds. | https://www.wjhl.com/news/local/forest-service-to-close-flood-damaged-road-in-sullivan-co-for-repairs/ | 2023-06-23T16:11:17 | 1 | https://www.wjhl.com/news/local/forest-service-to-close-flood-damaged-road-in-sullivan-co-for-repairs/ |
KINGSPORT, Tenn. (WJHL) – The Tennessee Bureau of Investigation (TBI) has issued an Endangered Child Alert for a missing 11-year-old from Kingsport last seen Thursday night.
According to the TBI, Joshua Hunley is five feet tall and weighs 110 pounds. He has blonde hair and blue eyes. The Kingsport Police Department (KPD) also reports Joshua has a scar on the left side of his nose that extends down to his lip.
The TBI reports Joshua has a medical condition and is thought to be without his medication.
When Joshua was last seen Thursday, the TBI reports he was wearing a blue shirt, black shorts and tan Timberland work boots. The KPD reports he was reported missing around 11:30 p.m. but was last seen around 8 p.m.
At the time Joshua was last seen, the KPD reports he was seen on foot in the 300 block of Walker Street in Kingsport.
According to the KPD, “the circumstances of his disappearance do not presently meet the criteria for an Amber Alert.” Kingsport police stated they do not suspect foul play as of Friday morning, but the Endangered Child Alert was issued due to his age and medical history.
Anyone with information on Joshua’s location is asked to call Kingsport police at 423-229-9429 or the TBI at 1-800-TBI-FIND. | https://www.wjhl.com/news/local/tbi-issues-endangered-child-alert-for-kingsport-boy/ | 2023-06-23T16:11:23 | 1 | https://www.wjhl.com/news/local/tbi-issues-endangered-child-alert-for-kingsport-boy/ |
CITRUS HEIGHTS, Calif — Seven people are without a home and six dogs were rescued from a house fire in Citrus Heights Thursday.
Crews with the Sacramento Metropolitan Fire District responded to the fire and worked to search for people inside and put out the flames. Crews were looking for other dogs and had not found 3 chihuahuas as of 7:20 a.m. Friday.
No injuries were reported in the fire and it is under investigation.
Watch more on ABC10 | https://www.abc10.com/article/news/local/citrus-heights/citrus-heights-house-fire-7-displaced-dogs-rescued/103-abf72f11-d2fe-4cc8-8703-6967379370c2 | 2023-06-23T16:14:59 | 1 | https://www.abc10.com/article/news/local/citrus-heights/citrus-heights-house-fire-7-displaced-dogs-rescued/103-abf72f11-d2fe-4cc8-8703-6967379370c2 |
ET, the world's oldest African penguin, died June 17 of natural causes, the Metro Richmond Zoo said in a statement Thursday. She was 43 years old.
ET had developed arthritis, like most elderly penguins, and had impaired vision in one eye, but was otherwise in good health for her age, zoo officials said. She was seen swimming in her pool the day before she died.
But ET didn't come when called by her caretaker the evening of June 17, so she was taken to the temporary vet clinic. That's when staff determined that she was most likely dying.
"Her last moments were spent surrounded by many of the staff who cared for her throughout the years," zoo officials said. "Jessica Gring, one of our lead zookeepers, held ET in her arms and felt her take one last breath."
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African penguins, an endangered species, typically live 15-20 years in the wild, but can live longer in zoological parks. ET laid more than 45 eggs during her time in Richmond, and one of ET's daughters from a previous zoo lived to the age of 37.
Penguins are monogamous and mate for life. ET had outlived two previous mates in Richmond and had been living with a third, Einstein, in a private enclosure. Zoo officials said that Einstein rejoined the larger penguin colony Sunday morning.
ET was beloved across the world, making it to the semifinal round, or "Flipper Four," of Penguins International's March of the Penguin Madness tournament earlier this year.
ET was born January 28, 1980, at the Detroit Zoo, then moved to the Columbus Zoo, where she was named in 1982 — the year that the movie "E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial" came out.
She was an original member of the Metro Richmond Zoo's penguin colony, arriving in 1995.
"ET will be missed," the zoo said. "Long live the Queen!" | https://richmond.com/news/local/metro-richmond-zoo-et-african-penguin-obituary/article_8701ad6e-11d2-11ee-9b44-dbd92365393e.html | 2023-06-23T16:16:32 | 1 | https://richmond.com/news/local/metro-richmond-zoo-et-african-penguin-obituary/article_8701ad6e-11d2-11ee-9b44-dbd92365393e.html |
PLEASANTVILLE — The Board of Education ratified a new contract with its school bus drivers last week.
The agreement came as officials from Teamsters Local 331, which represented the drivers and bus aides in negotiations, spoke about the need to attract and retain drivers in the midst of a tightening labor market.
After the ratification, which occurred in the middle of a three-hour June 13 meeting, union officials in attendance celebrated the new contract.
Local 331 President Marcus King reflected positively on the negotiations with Pleasantville Public Schools and said he was satisfied with the terms the union achieved for bus drivers. The agreement, King said, had won overwhelming support in a vote of union rank-and-file, describing it as “a fair contract.”
“This was an improvement tonight,” King said just before the vote on the contract. “I’m very satisfied with what happened, probably one of the best negotiations I’ve had in the three contracts I’ve negotiated (with Pleasantville).”
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“I believe the drivers received what they were entitled to,” added Local 331 Secretary Treasurer Abi Ortiz.
Thomas Henshaw, a labor negotiator for the school district, felt similarly positive about the talks.
“Negotiations went really well with the Teamsters,” Henshaw said.
PLEASANTVILLE — The local school bus union is speaking out for the need for higher wages in …
In the runup to the ratification vote, union officials had expressed anxiety about pay. Shop stewards said stagnant wages were leaving Pleasantville uncompetitive in the labor market, as neighboring districts and private busing companies hike pay. At a school board meeting in May, they warned that a failure to keep pace with the market could see the district experience staffing shortages.
King has framed negotiations in Pleasantville in the context of broader, structural issues in the busing market. He added school districts and bus companies now have to contend with new federal regulations in the labor market.
In February 2022, the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration enacted new regulations requiring driving candidates to obtain their commercial driver's licenses from a nationally certified organization, something that has further disrupted the supply of drivers. King added that private companies were often in a position to pay for their applicants' training, a luxury not available to school districts.
“It’s going to be harder for the school to have a system where people will be coming along,” King said. “They’re going to hire people now who (already) have a CDL. … There’s no feeder program for the school board.”
Henshaw said finding a way to retain bus staff was a priority of the school district as well. The school board had voted to retain Henshaw for talks with the Teamsters at a rate of $100 per hour and on June 13 authorized Henshaw to work an additional 25 hours at a rate of $100 per hour for negotiations with the Teamsters.
“The two major factors for us during negotiations on both sides was retainage of employees, because it’s hard to get people today to come with a CDL license and everything, so if you lose an employee, it’s very hard to replace,” Henshaw said.
King said there was a particular need to add more full-time drivers to the district, so they could better manage their workload and give more consistency to their schedules. The prominence of part-time drivers, King said, often leaves the relatively smaller fleet of full-time drivers to handle after-school and other non-regular assignments in the district. He had previously said the part-time drivers do not collect the benefits that their full-time counterparts have and so were particularly vulnerable to being poached by a private-sector offer. Of the 27 total bus drivers at Pleasantville, King said 18 drove part time.
“When you look at it, some of the driving work they have to sub out to some of these private companies, because we don’t have enough drivers,” King said. “Not that the school district did anything wrong … it’s just the marketplace and there’s more driving needed.”
PLEASANTVILLE — The local Board of Education voted last week to appoint Patricia King to fil…
The structural problems faced by Pleasantville were on display at the beginning of the 2022-23 school year in South Jersey school districts, including neighboring Egg Harbor Township, citing a bus-driver shortfall. An Integrity Transportation official said just before the start of the school year that his company was running about 10 bus drivers short from his typical workforce of 150 to 170. He said the company needed to raise pay significantly to draw new drivers but was getting fewer than two applicants per job advertisement.
A report from the federal Bureau of Labor Statistics published in May 2022 found the average hourly wage for elementary and secondary school bus drivers was $19.45.
The current collective bargaining agreement scheduled $1-per-hour pay increases on July 1 of 2020, 2021 and 2022 and runs through the end of June. The new contract runs from July 1, 2023, to June 30, 2026. Details about pay were not included in the version of the contract available on the district website. | https://pressofatlanticcity.com/news/local/education/pleasantville-school-board-ratifies-bus-driver-contract/article_5eb4fd90-1144-11ee-81e0-9b186cc62b3c.html | 2023-06-23T16:17:40 | 0 | https://pressofatlanticcity.com/news/local/education/pleasantville-school-board-ratifies-bus-driver-contract/article_5eb4fd90-1144-11ee-81e0-9b186cc62b3c.html |
Jackknifed semi leaks diesel fuel on I-75 in southwest Detroit
A semi-truck jackknifed Friday morning on Interstate 75 in Detroit and leaked fuel on the freeway, prompting state police to close it temporarily.
No injuries or damage to any other vehicles was reported, officials said.
Traffic was routed off southbound I-75 to Interstate 96 in southwest Detroit to enable crews to clean up the diesel fuel.
Michigan Department of Transportation officials reported the crash at about 9:20 a.m.
Michigan State Police Lt. Mike Shaw said at about 9:45 a.m. that the semi's cargo trailer had been moved from the freeway's shoulder and that most of the leaked diesel fuel had been cleaned up.
He said the cause of the crash has yet to be determined and the investigation is ongoing.
The semi's driver told troopers that he was cut off by a passenger car before the crash, Shaw said.
cramirez@detroitnews.com
Twitter: @CharlesERamirez | https://www.detroitnews.com/story/news/local/detroit-city/2023/06/23/jackknifed-semi-leaks-diesel-fuel-on-i-75-in-southwest-detroit-friday/70350037007/ | 2023-06-23T16:18:25 | 1 | https://www.detroitnews.com/story/news/local/detroit-city/2023/06/23/jackknifed-semi-leaks-diesel-fuel-on-i-75-in-southwest-detroit-friday/70350037007/ |
Man's body found in Detroit River early Friday, police say
Charles E. Ramirez
The Detroit News
The body of an unidentified male was found early Friday in the Detroit River, police said.
The investigation into the man's death is ongoing.
Officials said the man's body was discovered in the river's waters at West Jefferson Avenue and 24th Street. Both the Ambassador Bridge and the city's Riverside Park are located nearby.
Officers were called to the location at about 6:56 a.m.
They said the Wayne County Medical Examiner's Office will conduct an autopsy and determine the cause of death. Police said they are not releasing any further information at this time.
cramirez@detroitnews.com
Twitter: @CharlesERamirez | https://www.detroitnews.com/story/news/local/detroit-city/2023/06/23/mans-body-found-in-detroit-river-early-friday-police-say/70350478007/ | 2023-06-23T16:18:31 | 1 | https://www.detroitnews.com/story/news/local/detroit-city/2023/06/23/mans-body-found-in-detroit-river-early-friday-police-say/70350478007/ |
2 paraprofessionals removed from Detroit school, 1 charged with abuse, assault
Southfield — Two paraprofessionals have been removed from a Detroit school for children with special needs for assaulting children they work with, one of whom is facing criminal charges, according to a Detroit Public Schools official.
Moses Field Center paraprofessional Felicia Perkins, 51, is charged in Wayne County with fourth-degree child abuse and misdemeanor assault in connection with an incident where she allegedly put her hands around a 12-year-old student's neck, shook him and lifted him from his chair by his neck, according to an employee discipline report from the Detroit Public School district.
Wayne County Assistant Prosecutor Maria Miller confirmed the charges, saying Perkins allegedly choked the boy and pulled him out of the cafeteria while holding the back of his neck. Charges were filed in May, Miller said.
The January incident with the 12-year-old student was recorded on video, according to the DPS discipline report. Perkins said in a written statement she felt threatened by the student's threats to have several family members attack her, according to the report. The district had additional video from four days before the incident with the 12-year-old of Perkins swatting at another student and aggressively pulling his arm and chair in response to him holding a shoe in her direction, according to the report.
Perkins was fired from Detroit schools last week during the board of education meeting, according to meeting minutes.
The mother of the 12-year-old boy, Tina Gross, said during a press conference Thursday that she didn't hear from the school about the paraprofessional being accused of assaulting her son. She heard about it from someone else originally and hadn't realized the extent of the assault until she got a subpoena from Detroit's 36th District Court to testify.
"I really want justice for my son and I really want that principal to be removed," Gross said Thursday during a press conference.
Her son functions at a kindergarten level, Gross said.
"No one from the school called to inform me of anything," Gross said. "My son came home and said that he was choked and slapped by a teacher. I didn't know what to believe until I received the (subpoena)."
A second paraprofessional who was involved in an investigation into child abuse at Moses Field also no longer is employed by the district, said DPS Assistant Superintendent of Communications Chrystal Wilson. There's no record in school board minutes that the paraprofessional was fired, and Wilson did not respond to clarify if the person resigned or were fired. Wilson said the investigation found "improper conduct" by the paraprofessional.
Caroletta Sprinkle, an attorney who is representing Gross and other families of students at Moses Field, said she is sure there are other families and children in Detroit who have experienced the abuse, neglect or improper restraints as well.
"You trust in your heart the individuals who work in these positions will properly care for your child," Sprinkle said. "School should be a safe environment for all children regardless of special needs."
Sprinkle said Detroit schools need to be held accountable and need to make some changes.
"We are looking for policy changes, we're looking for administrative changes and we’re looking for corrections," Sprinkle said at a press conference Thursday. "This is something these parents weren't aware of, that the children aren't able to speak on. If we don't include those measures in a lawsuit it's just going to continue to happen."
Angela Leaks, the parent of a 6-year-old girl who was allegedly hit in the back of her head by a teacher, said the principal should be penalized for allegedly knowing about the abuse but not doing anything about it. Wilson said there is no evidence administrators or staff knew of abuse.
Leaks said at Thursday's press conference she heard about the issues at Moses Brown from a report in the Detroit Native Sun newspaper and asked her daughter if she knew about it. Her daughter told Leak her teacher hit her on the head, Leak said.
She removed her daughter from the school in April, too concerned to let her continue attending. Leak homeschools her daughter now and does the best she can to teach her, she said.
Tanisha Floyd first heard in June, a week before school ended for the year, that police were investigating the abuse, she said at the Thursday press conference. An officer told her that her daughter was one of the children being looked into.
Her 12-year-old daughter had been left in a restraint chair for hours, Floyd said. Her daughter had come home twice double-diapered and once with her soiled pants in a bag.
Her daughter started to regress and become more emotional, Floyd said. In the mornings, she would cry and not want to go to school. Floyd realizes now that her daughter was acting out because she was scared and looking for someone to help her.
"She'll sit in that chair all day and she wasn't even getting changed right," Floyd said. "I was furious. I was super furious because no one told me anything. … It was heart dropping to even hear about it because my child is non-verbal and doesn't walk on her own; she needs help with everything."
kberg@detroitnews.com | https://www.detroitnews.com/story/news/local/wayne-county/2023/06/23/2-staffers-removed-from-detroit-school-1-charged-with-abuse-assault/70339243007/ | 2023-06-23T16:18:37 | 0 | https://www.detroitnews.com/story/news/local/wayne-county/2023/06/23/2-staffers-removed-from-detroit-school-1-charged-with-abuse-assault/70339243007/ |
Taylor man charged with fatal shooting of girlfriend in motel room
A Taylor man has been charged in connection with the fatal shooting of his girlfriend in a Taylor motel room, according to prosecutors.
Nickolas Cannon, 42, allegedly shot his girlfriend Lakeshia Smith at about 5:49 p.m. Tuesday inside a motel room in the 9300 block of North Telegraph Road in Taylor after an argument between the two escalated, according to a press release from the Wayne County Prosecutor's Office.
Police found Smith, 38, of Detroit, inside the motel room with a gunshot wound to the forehead, according to the press release. She was pronounced dead at the scene.
Cannon was charged with first-degree murder, third offense domestic violence and two counts of felony firearm.
He's expected to be arraigned in 23rd District Court Friday afternoon.
kberg@detroitnews.com | https://www.detroitnews.com/story/news/local/wayne-county/2023/06/23/taylor-man-charged-with-fatal-shooting-of-girlfriend-in-motel-room/70350460007/ | 2023-06-23T16:18:43 | 0 | https://www.detroitnews.com/story/news/local/wayne-county/2023/06/23/taylor-man-charged-with-fatal-shooting-of-girlfriend-in-motel-room/70350460007/ |
Calhoun Street between Superior and Berry streets will have lane restrictions Monday, according to the Fort Wayne Traffic Engineering Department.
A utility crew will be working in the area and should finish the same day.
For more information, call 260-427-6155 or visit www.trecthefort.org. | https://www.journalgazette.net/local/calhoun-street-lane-restrictions/article_cc3fa83c-11d1-11ee-8bf5-6bb9c8049710.html | 2023-06-23T16:20:11 | 0 | https://www.journalgazette.net/local/calhoun-street-lane-restrictions/article_cc3fa83c-11d1-11ee-8bf5-6bb9c8049710.html |
DEKALB COUNTY, Ga. — DeKalb Police said Friday they were investigating the death of an infant.
There were few other details immediately available. According to the DeKalb County Police Department, they received a call from a local hospital about the infant after midnight Friday morning.
How the infant may have died or otherwise been harmed was not clear. Police did not say what hospital the call came from.
News happens fast. Download our 11Alive News app for all the latest breaking updates, and sign up for our Speed Feed newsletter to get a rundown of the latest headlines across north Georgia. | https://www.11alive.com/article/news/local/dekalb-police-infant-death-investigation/85-853de098-e17a-4393-9a8e-150e0479159b | 2023-06-23T16:20:17 | 1 | https://www.11alive.com/article/news/local/dekalb-police-infant-death-investigation/85-853de098-e17a-4393-9a8e-150e0479159b |
Covington Road between West Jefferson Boulevard and South Bend Drive will have lane restrictions Monday, according to the Fort Wayne Traffic Engineering Department.
A utility crew will be working in the area, but should finish the same day.
For more information, call 260-427-6155 or visit www.trecthefort.org. | https://www.journalgazette.net/local/covington-road-lane-restrictions/article_19635d82-11d9-11ee-b959-c3264efbdca1.html | 2023-06-23T16:20:17 | 1 | https://www.journalgazette.net/local/covington-road-lane-restrictions/article_19635d82-11d9-11ee-b959-c3264efbdca1.html |
KALAMAZOO, Mich. — A mourning family and his hometown community in Michigan will celebrate the life of a 9-year-old boy Friday who was tragically killed in an accidental shooting in East Point earlier this month.
You can watch the celebration of life services for King Javaire Black here.
Black died at a home on East Washington Avenue in early June.
Authorities said that they believe the shooting happened inside the home. Two other children were in the house at the time of the shooting, police said.
Investigators had previously said the shooting appeared to be accidental. After further investigation, police said the mother at the home - not King's - is now facing charges for convincing her children to lie about what happened.
Police records show the woman's son was playing with a loaded Glock handgun inside the home and the gun accidentally discharged. King was standing outside the front door and the bullet hit him in the chest, records show.
Police learned about the details when the woman's 6-year-old daughter explained to investigators during an interview she and her brother were told to lie about what happened, a report reveals.
"Another child's life should not be taken because of irresponsibility," Joy Black, King's mother said.
Fulton County jail records show the mother of the child who fired the gun is currently facing two charges of influencing a witness. 11Alive is not naming her because she is not directly accused of King's death.
However, those charges could be upgraded.
East Point Police Chief Shawn Buchanan said the mother left her two children and King alone while she went shopping with the loaded gun in the house.
"She knew the truth. She tried to conceal the truth," Buchanan said. "In addition, (she) actually tried to get the kids to lie about what occurred. This is a tragedy all the way around, but then to try to get the children to lie?" | https://www.11alive.com/article/news/local/king-black-accidental-east-point-shooting-michigan-celebration-of-life/85-fc626d05-7066-4746-a701-10ab1aea9e59 | 2023-06-23T16:20:23 | 0 | https://www.11alive.com/article/news/local/king-black-accidental-east-point-shooting-michigan-celebration-of-life/85-fc626d05-7066-4746-a701-10ab1aea9e59 |
Stellhorn Road between Maple Terrace Parkway and Maplecrest Road will have lane restrictions Monday, according to the Fort Wayne Traffic Engineering Department.
A road crew will be working in the area and should finish July 7.
For more information, call 260-427-6155 or visit www.trecthefort.org. | https://www.journalgazette.net/local/stellhorn-road-lane-restrictions/article_76e448b4-11d8-11ee-be7c-67990b542140.html | 2023-06-23T16:20:23 | 1 | https://www.journalgazette.net/local/stellhorn-road-lane-restrictions/article_76e448b4-11d8-11ee-be7c-67990b542140.html |
Trier Road at the Hobson Road intersection will have lane restrictions Monday, according to the Fort Wayne Traffic Engineering Department.
A utility crew will be working in the area and should finish the same day.
For more information, call 260-427-6155 or visit www.trecthefort.org.
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Please be advised that Monday June 26, 2023 there will be lane restrictions on
These restrictions are needed for communication line work.
Frontier Communications will be performing the work and weather permitting is anticipating it will be completed the same day.
Frontier Communications crews will be responsible for the placement and maintenance of all construction signs and barricades in the work zone.
For further information or for problems that may develop contact the Right of Way Department at 427-6155 or visit www.trecthefort.org for additional information | https://www.journalgazette.net/local/trier-road-lane-restrictions/article_4e966656-11d5-11ee-bc1d-0329b4ecf83a.html | 2023-06-23T16:20:29 | 0 | https://www.journalgazette.net/local/trier-road-lane-restrictions/article_4e966656-11d5-11ee-bc1d-0329b4ecf83a.html |
Washington Center Road between Oregon Drive and Cross Creek Boulevard will have lane restrictions Monday, according to the Fort Wayne Traffic Engineering Department.
A utility crew will be working in the area and should finish Wednesday.
For more information, call 260-427-6155 or visit www.trecthefort.org. | https://www.journalgazette.net/local/washington-center-road-lane-restrictions/article_6c7641d6-11d6-11ee-9ebe-a32d569d5102.html | 2023-06-23T16:20:36 | 0 | https://www.journalgazette.net/local/washington-center-road-lane-restrictions/article_6c7641d6-11d6-11ee-9ebe-a32d569d5102.html |
Wayne Street between Harrison and Calhoun streets will have lane restrictions Monday, according to the Fort Wayne Traffic Engineering Department.
A utility crew will be working in the area and should finish the same day.
For more information, call 260-427-6155 or visit www.trecthefort.org. | https://www.journalgazette.net/local/wayne-street-lane-restrictions/article_bc934af0-11d7-11ee-9a82-63e25f940c16.html | 2023-06-23T16:20:42 | 0 | https://www.journalgazette.net/local/wayne-street-lane-restrictions/article_bc934af0-11d7-11ee-9a82-63e25f940c16.html |
A 59-year-old Lincoln man was arrested in the parking lot of a local sex store Thursday after he threatened a Doctor John's employee with a screwdriver following his removal from the store, according to police.
Police arrested Daryl Stokebrand at the store, near 48th and Vine streets, just before 6 p.m. Thursday after they responded to the shop on a report of a male chasing an employee with a knife, Lincoln Police Sgt. Chris Vollmer said.
When officers arrived on scene, they found a 53-year-old employee holding Stokebrand down in the parking lot, Vollmer said.
The employee told police that Stokebrand had been in the business several times and, when he was asked to leave, he brandished a screwdriver, threatened the 53-year-old and tried to strike him with it, Vollmer said.
The Doctor John's staffer instead struck Stokebrand, holding him down until police arrived, Vollmer said. | https://journalstar.com/news/local/crime-courts/lincoln-man-threatened-doctor-johns-staff-with-screwdriver-outside-sex-store-police-allege/article_76b89356-11d6-11ee-b151-8fd5047a0767.html | 2023-06-23T16:22:10 | 0 | https://journalstar.com/news/local/crime-courts/lincoln-man-threatened-doctor-johns-staff-with-screwdriver-outside-sex-store-police-allege/article_76b89356-11d6-11ee-b151-8fd5047a0767.html |
A 24-year-old man is in custody after a nearly three-hour standoff with law enforcement near South 13th and Van Dorn streets.
Lancaster County Sheriff Chief Deputy Ben Houchin said Gabriel Olivas, who has a history of violence and use of firearms, had refused to exit a home at 2672 S. 12th St.
The sheriff's department used a chemical agent to smoke Olivas out onto the roof of the house at about 11 a.m. A woman, who was also inside the home, came out a door on the main level at about the same time. Neither had weapons, Houchin said. The woman was also arrested on a warrant.
Earlier, a 44-year-old man who came out of the house was arrested. Arthur Francis Jr. was taken into custody at about 10:30 a.m. for felony domestic assault, Houchin said.
It was unclear if any of the three lived in the home.
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Olivas was being sought by Lincoln Police in connection with a robbery on Wednesday near 21st and Washington streets where he allegedly pushed a person out of their vehicle and used the car to flee police.
Houchin said there were also four misdemeanor warrants for Olivas on charges including theft by shoplifting, obstructing a peace officer and driving under suspension.
The standoff started around 8:30 a.m. Friday.
This is a developing story. Return to Journalstar.com for updates. | https://journalstar.com/news/local/crime-courts/public-asked-to-avoid-area-of-reported-standoff-in-south-lincoln/article_a2a5b116-11d0-11ee-9129-a31e3c0fee78.html | 2023-06-23T16:22:16 | 1 | https://journalstar.com/news/local/crime-courts/public-asked-to-avoid-area-of-reported-standoff-in-south-lincoln/article_a2a5b116-11d0-11ee-9129-a31e3c0fee78.html |
OCALA, Fla. – Another duplex in Ocala has been deemed unsafe as constant rain dribbles on, causing more problems in Marion County.
The Marion County Sheriff’s Office provided an update Friday morning, telling News 6 that emergency management staff reported a home along SW 23rd Place was flooded and “red tagged.” The American Red Cross was called to assist the families impacted.
Additionally, the sheriff’s office acknowledged multiple reports of ground depressions showing up in the Dunnellon area, about 20 miles from where a home in Ocala was evacuated on Wednesday after a 30-foot hole appeared just feet away from the structure.
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Concerning Friday’s update, the sheriff’s office stated emergency management crews were on their way to verify the reported holes in Dunnellon.
Photos of the Ocala neighborhood with the latest duplex to be cleared out over safety concerns were shared to News 6 by the sheriff’s office, showing reflections of homes, vehicles and vegetation in water now either at level with or above lawns and driveways.
No other information has been shared at the time of this writing.
[RELATED: What in the weather is happening? Here’s why it’s so stormy in Central Florida]
This is a developing story. Check back with News 6 for the latest updates.
Get today’s headlines in minutes with Your Florida Daily: | https://www.clickorlando.com/news/local/2023/06/23/duplex-deemed-unsafe-more-ground-depressions-reported-as-more-rain-dumps-on-marion-county/ | 2023-06-23T16:25:39 | 0 | https://www.clickorlando.com/news/local/2023/06/23/duplex-deemed-unsafe-more-ground-depressions-reported-as-more-rain-dumps-on-marion-county/ |
ORLANDO, Fla. – A Central Florida eatery topped the list of travel website Trips to Discover’s 10 best U.S. award-winning restaurants.
Victoria & Albert’s restaurant at Disney’s Grand Floridian Resort & Spa took the No. 1 spot on the list, earning full marks for its TripAdvisor Food and Service scores.
The list, which was released Tuesday, examines three-star Michelin, five-star Forbes and AAA five-diamond-designated restaurants — checking factors such as customer reviews and ratings to help determine the best.
Additionally, this list used “qualitative review sentiment analysis” of restaurants with the highest customer review scores to extract “feelings, emotions and nuanced points of view from customer reviews.”
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Victoria & Albert’s has been a winner of the AAA Five Diamond Award every year since 2000 and the Forbes Travel Guide Five-Star Award, according to its website.
Being a premiere restaurant at the Walt Disney World Resort, the restaurant offers American cuisine with an award-winning wine list that features a collection of over 500 wines from 35 regions.
Find every episode of Florida Foodie on YouTube:
“Victoria and Albert’s is a highly regarded destination, with the vast majority of reviewers describing the experience as fabulous, memorable and perfect,” Trips to Discover journalist Noah Holtgraves wrote. “Reviewers highly praise the acclaimed tasting menu that caters to specific dietary needs. The restaurant is also a feast for the eyes — customers rave about the artistic presentation of dishes and the elegantly decorated yet intimate atmosphere.”
The prix-fixe menu at Victoria & Albert’s starts out at $295 per guest, with optional wine pairings beginning at $150 per guest. The restaurant is also restricted to guests ages 10 and over.
Reservations are required and can be made online or by calling (407) 939-3862.
Check out the Florida Foodie podcast. You can find every episode in the media player below: | https://www.clickorlando.com/news/local/2023/06/23/central-florida-eatery-tops-list-of-best-us-award-winning-restaurants/ | 2023-06-23T16:26:48 | 1 | https://www.clickorlando.com/news/local/2023/06/23/central-florida-eatery-tops-list-of-best-us-award-winning-restaurants/ |
Bloomington artist reshapes masters' works, Picasso and Sargent, with animals
Even those who disagree with Joe Lee's longstanding weekly political cartoons in this and other newspapers, will find plenty with which to agree at his art exhibit. "Artists and Other Animals: New Work of Joe Lee" runs through July 1 at By Hand Gallery, inside Fountain Square.
The first thing all can agree with is that this guy has talent aplenty. The second could be that he digs tricking our brains and challenging our logic.
Tickling our minds: Yikes, what is that?
"I like the idea of playing with symbols," Lee said over the phone. "Things with a certain meaning, going in a different direction. But still recognizable.
"Like, when people say, 'Oh, wait. This looks like (something), but it isn't what I remember.'"
Take Pablo Picasso's"Girl before a Mirror" (1932), where the girl sees her reflection very differently from how the viewer sees the girl. Picasso and other artists kept popping into Lee's brain. In fact, Lee's dog, George, inspired him to create a Lee version of "Girl before a Mirror."
Inspiration from prominent historical artists
Artist John Singer Sargent often showed a highbrow disdain for the lower creatures, Lee said. "Sargent usually does the upper class. And his 'Madame X' is so foxlike."
But then Sargent surprised Lee with that painting of World War I. Young soldiers walk with their hands on the soldiers' shoulder directly in front of them. Each had been blinded by mustard gas. John Singer Sargent was born in 1856 in Florence, Italy, and studied art in Rome, becoming one of the most famous painters of his era.
"(That World War I painting) is incredibly powerful. It describes, as do works like (Erich Maria Remarque 's) novel 'All Quiet on the Western Front,' war's destruction." ("All Quiet on the Western Front" looks at German soldiers' agony during and after the war.)
Joe Lee honored:Bloomington authors shortlisted for Indiana Authors Awards
Many Hoosiers and others have grown up reading Lee's commentary and nodding or gasping at his cartoons. From 1992 to 2002, he worked for the Bloomington Voice, which became the Alternative. Next he went to The Herald-Times, where he contributed for more than two decades, missing only two days worth of art. Recently, he left The Herald-Times and is working on other projects, such as illustrating playing cards and possibly a book on the Scottish folksong and rhyme "Frog Went a Courtin.'"
Those attending Lee's current exhibition will see that he has done research, in addition to John Singer Sargent, on Hans Holbein the Younger, a German-Swiss painter and printmaker of the Northern Renaissance style. Scholars rank Holbein as a top people-painter of the 1500s. Holbein's well known painting of Henry VIII is what many of us think of when that king comes up.
"That painting speaks bear!"
Lee is a longstanding satirist, illustrator and writer of commentary. He continues that type of work, while also creating art far from mass media. He includes jocose references to paintings of famous artists such as Jean-Honoré Fragonard and Katsushika Hokusai, a Japanese painter and printmaker, beloved for his woodblock prints "Thirty-Six Views of Mount Fuji."
Lee's work also shows his appreciation of René François Ghislain Magritte, a Belgian surrealist artist. As does Magritte, Lee often starts with something we all know and then redirects us with a jolt.
The animal in us
A lifelong lover of animals and other nature, Lee encourages animals to stand in for people, at least in his art. Having worked in the circus and, in fact, working as a professional clown, perhaps further motivated him to recreate artful menageries. Through the years Lee has developed his rapport with different species of animals.
"I'm glad elephants are no longer used in circuses, but I'm glad I had the opportunity to get to know them."
Lee's "Artists and Other Animals: New Work of Joe Lee" has 16 new pen-and-ink drawings. He also displays a dozen full-color works, of which 10 are new. The exhibit's oldest piece is from from the "Summer Fun" issue of the old "Bloomington Voice." Look for the frog observing a mouse while swinging.
If you go
WHAT: Exhibition, "Artists and Other Animals: New Work of Joe Lee"WHEN: Now through July 1. Hours are 10 a.m.-5:30 p.m. Monday through Saturday.WHERE: By Hand Gallery, Suite 109, 101 W. Kirkwood Ave., inside Fountain Square; 812-334-3255; byhandgallery.com
MORE: Learn more about Joe Lee at amazon.com/stores/author/B099SZ932H/about. | https://www.heraldtimesonline.com/story/entertainment/local/2023/06/23/bloomington-artist-reshapes-masters-works-with-animalistic-touch/70342037007/ | 2023-06-23T16:34:51 | 1 | https://www.heraldtimesonline.com/story/entertainment/local/2023/06/23/bloomington-artist-reshapes-masters-works-with-animalistic-touch/70342037007/ |
Constellation Stage & Screen adds new associate artistic director Daniella Wheelock
She laughs "loudly and often." That comes in handy, as she, Daniella Wheelock, transitions into her new role as associate artistic director at Bloomington's Constellation Stage and Screen. She won't be laughing though, she predicts, as she looks for parking. In August the Indiana University students return, and Wheelock never had to park while working in Chicago.
"In Chicago (which she left for Bloomington, the first small town in which she has ever lived) I never had to look for parking. I took the "El" (elevated train) everywhere."
Sizzling with new-job excitement and expectations, Wheelock said she looks forward to learning more about the Bloomington arts scene. "There's so much here."
She's not a complete Bloomington newbie: She directed Cardinal Stage's "The Roommate" in 2020. She also served on the artistic advisory committee as Cardinal Stage transitioned to Constellation.
More:Constellation Stage & Screen offers original plays, premiere performances for 2023-24
Bloomington vs. Chicago
But, still, why leave one of the U.S.' biggest theater centers for south-central Indiana? Turns out, she has reasons.
"In Bloomington, I'll be able to talk to people more personally," she said on the phone. "I can meet people from the audience and actually get to know what they did or didn't like. In Chicago, it's harder to see that (kind of thing) up front."
Wheelock to direct "big-question" shows at Constellation
She looks forward to directing at Constellation, particularly shows that encourage audiences to "think and ask big questions. To have conversations that need to be had now."
Although several of Constellation's upcoming productions are children's or theater-for-younger-audiences shows, Wheelock said these can translate well for adults. They can be conversation-starters, too, for young people.
"Storytelling bridges gaps." After all, Constellation's educational programs, she said, were a potent draw for her as she considered the job offer.
Directing shows since age 11
Wheelock began her directing career at age 11, when she assistant-directed her middle school's "Hamlet." "Directing was a natural thing for me. I follow where the stories go."
Something she has learned is that if a director has good actors and designers, she need "do very little work." Although Wheelock was likely being humble, there's truth to the belief, since a large part of a director's job is casting and other hiring. When talented colleagues abound, she said, she can step back, observe and say, "This actually looks good."
She graduated magna cum laude from the Conservatory for Theatre Arts at Webster University in St. Louis with a degree in directing. Originally, she is from San Diego. At Milwaukee Repertory Theatre she assistant-directed six shows. She has also assistant-directed at the Repertory Theatre of St. Louis and Steppenwolf Theatre Company. As a director she has worked in cities including San Diego, Boise, St. Louis, Milwaukee, New York, Bloomington, Indianapolis and Chicago.
She is also an institutional giving consultant at Artistic Fundraising Group, which aids nonprofits in Chicago's cultural scene.
Wheelock tips hat to Kate Galvin
Wheelock will work with Constellation staff, including Kate Galvin, who is the company's artistic director until August. Galvin will begin working part time casting and directing for Constellation, while she also seeks freelance directing work elsewhere.
"Kate knows the local talent base very well," Wheelock said. "She also is really really good at knowing the heart of a play."
Wheelock stressed the importance she places on making sure everyone in her casts is heard, noting that theater can promote "empathy and understanding."
Hey, we hear you laughing
New jobs are daunting, but something happened recently that made Wheelock's day: "An actor told me, 'We can always hear you laughing.'"
Find more about Daniella Wheelock at https://www.daniellawheelock.com/about-1. | https://www.heraldtimesonline.com/story/entertainment/local/2023/06/23/bloomingtons-constellation-locks-in-new-associate-artistic-director/70343837007/ | 2023-06-23T16:34:57 | 0 | https://www.heraldtimesonline.com/story/entertainment/local/2023/06/23/bloomingtons-constellation-locks-in-new-associate-artistic-director/70343837007/ |
Five places to see fireworks around Bloomington this 4th of July holiday
As June wraps up and July approaches, it's almost time for Independence Day. That means days spent splashing in Lake Monroe, munching hot dogs at the county fair and ending the night with a bang (or several). Looking for fireworks shows to celebrate the Fourth? Here are five shows, beginning June 30 and ending July 8, in and around the Bloomington area.
June 30: Monroe County Fairgrounds fireworks
The fireworks display will be Friday, June 30, at the Monroe County Fairgrounds, kicking off the 2023 Monroe County Fair. You can enter through Gate 3 at 6 p.m. with your blankets and lawn chairs. There will be food vendors and live music begins at 8 that night. Admission is donation only. All donations are used to purchase fireworks. The fairgrounds are at 5700 W. Airport Road in Bloomington.
July 2: Owen County fireworks show
Head to Owen County for a free fireworks show at dusk Sunday, July 2, in Spencer. Designated parking areas are IHC Owen County, Owen County Family YMCA, Owen Valley Health Campus, Owen Valley Sports Complex, Spencer-Owen middle and high schools, and Spencer Save-A-Lot. Make a donation to the fireworks fund by visiting the Owen County Community Foundation.
July 2: Fireworks over Lake Monroe
If you’d rather be near Bloomington on Sunday, you can plan to watch fireworks over Lake Monroe. The Fourwinds Lakeside Inn & Marina fireworks show starts at dark, but you’ll want to be there early to get the best spot. To watch from the Fairfax State Recreation Area, you’ll have to pay $7 per vehicle.
July 3: Lake Lemon fireworks display
There will be an Independence Day fireworks celebration on Monday, July 3, at Riddle Point Park at Lake Lemon. They’ll light up the sky around 9:30 p.m. Get there early to get parking. It’ll cost $25 per vehicle, and all proceeds benefit the Lake Lemon Conservancy Fund. Bring your blankets and chairs, and look forward to dining from local food trucks including Pili’s Party Taco and Kona Ice. The park is at 7599 N. Tunnel Road, Unionville.
July 8: Ellettsville fireworks celebration
If the Fourth has passed and you still haven’t seen a show, there's one more chance. The annual Ellettsville fireworks celebration will run from 9-11 p.m. Saturday, July 8. The fireworks will be launched from the cross-country area behind Edgewood High School, at 601 Edgewood Drive, by the Ellettsville Volunteer Fire Department. | https://www.heraldtimesonline.com/story/entertainment/local/2023/06/23/where-to-see-fireworks-near-bloomington-for-the-4th-of-july/70344168007/ | 2023-06-23T16:35:03 | 1 | https://www.heraldtimesonline.com/story/entertainment/local/2023/06/23/where-to-see-fireworks-near-bloomington-for-the-4th-of-july/70344168007/ |
Why home prices in Bloomington are still rising
Home sales in Monroe County fell sharply in April as high interest rates kept buyers and sellers on the sidelines. The median home price, however, increased.
The Indiana Association of Realtors recorded 117 home sales for Monroe County in April, which was down from 168 in the same month last year. That drop — 30% — was significantly higher than the decline for the state overall, at 19%.
The median price for homes sold in Monroe County in April, at $326,000, was up from $315,000 a year earlier. That increase, 3.5%, was slightly below the state average of 4.3%.
Higher interest rates are primarily tempering demand in the lower price ranges because people who are heavily dependent on borrowing money to buy a home are more sensitive to higher interest rates, said Doug McCoy, teaching professor of finance and director of the Center for Real Estate Studies at Indiana University’s Kelley School of Business.
Rates for a 30-year fixed mortgage are hovering near 7%, up from about 3% early last year. That means the same house can cost borrowers hundreds of dollars more a month now than it would have just 18 months ago. That has priced many buyers on the low end out of the market.
On the other hand, McCoy said, people who have lots of equity in their home, or those who can buy homes with cash, are not affected as much — or at all — by interest rate hikes and are likely still buying homes. That helps explain why the median prices for homes in the state and in Monroe County are still rising.
Kristen Weida, association executive of the Bloomington Board of Realtors, said homes are not getting as many offers as a year ago. Last year, newly listed homes often would have multiple offers, typically far above asking, within days. Weida also said offers now are coming in closer to the listing price.
People who have to move because of a new job or life changes are still buying and selling, Weida said, but people who normally would upsize their home for a growing family or downsize because children have left are hesitating.
Moving outward:As rental costs spike in rural areas, so do requests for government help
Most people with a mortgage are probably paying an interest rate near 3%, but if they sell their home, they may have to take out a new mortgage at a much higher interest rate.
Weida said she recently had a child go off to college, and she really doesn’t need her size of home anymore, but when she looked into downsizing, she found right now, she would pay more a month for a smaller house. So, like many others in her situation, she has held on to her home.
“That really affects our inventory,” she said.
Few homes for sale in Monroe County — and Indiana
A low number of houses available for purchase remains the biggest problem in Monroe County — and across the state and nation, said Mark Fisher, chief executive officer of the Indiana Association of Realtors.
Fisher recently gave a speech at a Bloomington Board of Realtors meeting and said the number of homes available to buy fell 75% from 2014 to 2022, primarily because home construction fell sharply after the Great Recession. The country needs millions more houses, he said, and Indiana needs about 30,000 more.
Fisher said a housing supply of about 5.5 months is balanced between buyers and sellers, and Indiana’s supply is enough for less than two months, meaning the market is still skewed toward sellers.
Mortgage calculators show with Monroe County’s median household income of about $54,000, half of the county’s households cannot afford a home that costs more than $190,000. Realty company Zillow recently listed three homes available in Bloomington below that price. One of the homes was missing kitchen cabinet doors, had a hole in the ceiling and an exposed water heater.
Decisions on what to build and where
Weida said part of the local problem of low supply lies with a lack of local construction.
“There’s not a whole lot of building going on in Monroe County,” she said.
Weida said developers are hesitant to build in Monroe County more than elsewhere because getting projects approved locally is “a very difficult process.” And, she said, the county also needs people in elected office who understand the severity of the housing shortage.
Weida said the county commissioners, for example, turned down a housing project proposed by developer Tom Wininger, who is now building the homes in Greene County.
Wininger had planned to build 190 paired townhomes just south of Bloomington, but commissioners in 2021 rejected a rezoning request in part because they thought the homes were too dense for the county.
Denied:Monroe County rejects proposed winery over neighbor concerns about area's 'character'
Wininger is now building the townhomes in Greene County, where some of them are selling for less than $250,000. Meanwhile, on that property south of Bloomington, he is building detached single-family homes that start at $432,000.
Penny Githens, president of the county commissioners, said this week via email that one of the commissioner's guiding principles is "to keep the rural areas of Monroe County rural and keep the urban areas urban.
"Under the comprehensive plan, we attempt to focus on the best use for a given property, which takes into account drainage, karst features, traffic, overall terrain, and the current zoning of surrounding properties," she wrote. "We do listen to the current property owners/occupants, knowing they have made their decision on where to live based upon the conditions in existence when they moved into the area. As elected officials, we have been elected by the people who currently live here, not those who may come in the future or outside developers."
Githens said commissioners also have approved housing projects such as Westgate on Third and in the Clear Creek area.
"We are certainly seeing more pressure on the local housing market, partly due to the price of land locally," she wrote. "This is something beyond our control. We also have little to no influence on the wages paid to local residents, which also impacts 'affordability' of housing.
"As we review future housing rezone requests, there is additional pressure on density in the non-urban areas because of the City of Bloomington Utilities’ current practice of not extending sewer service outside the boundaries of the City of Bloomington," Githens wrote. "If you watched today’s Board of Commissioners’ work session, you know that we voted to support the Brown County Regional Sewer District’s effort to expand sewer service to houses on the eastern end of Lake Lemon, with the potential in a later phase to extend sewer service to the other properties around the Lake. If this succeeds, it will allow for greater density of future development in this area."
Cost of housing and its effect on business
Weida said the lack of local housing inventory also is hampering economic development, because some businesses are having a tough time recruiting workers to Bloomington because of high property prices.
She also said the high housing costs are pushing more young people, including college graduates, to choose to live in less expensive areas. For example, she said her son, who will attend the University of Evansville in the fall, had not yet secured an apartment by mid-June. If students tried to do that in Bloomington, their options would be severely limited. Weida said her son also does not have to rent an apartment in Evansville for the full year, and can instead live elsewhere over the summer, which is nearly unthinkable in Bloomington.
And, Weida said, when her son graduates, he is likely to avoid living in a place like Bloomington because of the high housing costs.
“Housing is a huge problem, and that’s all businesses are talking about,” she said.
Boris Ladwig can be reached at bladwig@heraldt.com. | https://www.heraldtimesonline.com/story/news/local/2023/06/23/home-sales-inventory-falls-prices-continue-rising-in-monroe-county/70338614007/ | 2023-06-23T16:35:15 | 1 | https://www.heraldtimesonline.com/story/news/local/2023/06/23/home-sales-inventory-falls-prices-continue-rising-in-monroe-county/70338614007/ |
It killed Socrates: This plant is flowering now and it can cause serious burns
There's something more dangerous than ticks in Indiana and elsewhere. It's a feathery-leafed plant with white flowers that looks deceptively pretty as it blooms along roadways and at the edges of fields across the Hoosier state.
But poison hemlock truly is poisonous — from roots to leaves to flowers and it's toxic to both animals and people. Just a slight touch of the flower or stem is enough to cause second- or third-degree chemical burns that bubble up and burst for a month or more.
Andrew Reuter, assistant director of Indiana's Division of Nature Preserves, knows all too well about those burns. Wearing gloves and a long-sleeved shirt while weed-eating a cluster of poison hemlock on a state property, he had a small area near his wrist exposed.
"It looked like a second-degree burn," he said of what the plant's toxins did to his skin. He had big blisters that easily ruptured and left painful, open sores. After multiple weeks of healing, Reuter had scars that were visible for months.
"I'll never go into a patch and think I'm going to weed-eat it again," he said. "It's not something you want to mess with. It's not something you want to ingest."
Reuter said anyone who plans to hand-pull the plants should wear personal protective equipment. He said the plants can be cut and sprayed during certain times of the year, but by the time people see the white flowers blooming, it's too late.
How to get rid of poison hemlock
The best time to locate and eradicate poison hemlock plants is during the first year when they are low-lying green plants that grow in a rosette. It's in the plant's second year that it grows a tall, hollow stem with umbrella-shaped clusters of white flowers that bloom in June and July. After the plant's flowers die back, the seeds mature and fall to the ground, creating clusters of the plant that grow in following years. Although the seeds aren't spread by birds or other wildlife, they can be distributed by mowing and agricultural machinery.
Although poison hemlock is found throughout Indiana every year, Matt Kraushar, a roadside maintenance specialist with the Indiana Department of Transportation, said this year the plant seems to be more prevalent than most. He attributes that to favorable fall, winter and spring conditions that have allowed the plants to thrive. "A mild winter, particularly in terms of temperature, is going to result in less winter mortality," he wrote in an email.
Unwanted:10 invasive species to watch out for across Indiana
For Kraushar and others eradicating poison hemlock by mowing or string-trimming, possible inhalation or ingestion of sap or plant parts is a major safety concern. Medical issues also can happen if sap from the plant enters through an open cut or a person wipes some of the sap into their eyes, nose or mouth. Because of that, INDOT recommends its workers not only wear protective clothing, but also wash their hands with soap and water after potential contact.
Oftentimes it takes more than one time of mowing or cutting to eradicate poison hemlock. The plant has a large taproot that sends up new shoots after a single mowing. Purdue University and other agencies recommend chemical removal if there's a large area and when the plant is growing, before flowering. First-year plants can be sprayed midsummer through fall. It's now too late in the year to chemically treat second-year plants.
Once flowers appear, Kraushar recommends leaving the plant alone to minimize potential contact and exposure. He said most of the plant's seeds will fall close to the current plant if left undisturbed. Then those areas can be flagged and treated after the plant dies back later in the year.
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Help with identifying poison hemlock
Poison hemlock is a member of Apiaceae (parsley) family and is a bi-annual plant, meaning it takes two years for it to complete its biological cycle and flower. The first year, plants are low to the ground and form a rosette with leaves resembling parsley. This plant is as poisonous as a second-year plant.
In the second year, poison hemlock grows hollow stems that can reach 3-10 feet in height with clusters of small white flowers that form umbrella-shaped clusters. The stems are light green with purple splotches. More information about poison hemlock can be found on the Purdue invasive plant series website, https://tinyurl.com/3xnzte9m, which includes photos of other similar-looking plants, including wild carrot (Queen Anne's lace) and cow parsnip. After poison hemlock flowers, its fruit turns grayish-brown.
Monroe County Identify and Reduce Invasive Species (MC-IRIS) is a local group that works to educate about and eradicate invasive species. Its members can help identify plant species.
Reporting locations of poison hemlock
Anyone who discovers poison hemlock can report where it is located at the Invasive and Exotic Species of North America website, www.invasive.org. The site has information about an app for professionals to record where invasive plants and animals are located as well as an invasive plant atlas for the U.S.
Bloomington has a U-Report system to report infestations of invasive plants: https://bloomington.in.gov/ureport/. In Indiana, the Southern Indiana Cooperative Invasives Management (SICIM), at www.sicim.info, is a nonprofit group that works to control invasive species.
Anyone who sees poison hemlock along state roadways can contact INDOT at indot4u.com or call 855-INDOT4U (463-6848).
The Indiana Invasive Species Council encourages people to document locations of invasive species at https://www.eddmaps.org/indiana. The data is used to inform many agencies and furthers the understanding of a species.
FYI: This is what killed Socrates
The most famous person killed by poison hemlock is Socrates. His death in 399 BCE was due to drinking a concoction of poison hemlock, according to a report by Plato. Socrates was killed after he was found guilty by a jury of 501 Athenians for charges of impiety and corrupting youth in Athens.
Contact Carol Kugler at ckugler@heraldt.com, 812-331-4359 or @ckugler on Twitter. | https://www.heraldtimesonline.com/story/news/local/2023/06/23/poison-hemlock-causes-second-third-degree-burns-is-flowering-now/70326237007/ | 2023-06-23T16:35:21 | 0 | https://www.heraldtimesonline.com/story/news/local/2023/06/23/poison-hemlock-causes-second-third-degree-burns-is-flowering-now/70326237007/ |
TIMONIUM, Md. — Police say a Friday morning barricade situation in Timonium has been resolved.
Residents living in and around the 100 block of E. Timonium Road were previously told to shelter indoors while police investigated.
Traffic was also temorarily rerouted along E. Timonium Road between Greenmeadow Drive and Eastridge Road.
Within two-hours police called off the barricade.
Police have not yet released any specifics of what led to the barricade.
This is a developing story that will be updated. | https://www.wmar2news.com/local/residents-sheltering-in-place-while-police-handle-barricade-situation-on-timonium-road | 2023-06-23T16:36:56 | 1 | https://www.wmar2news.com/local/residents-sheltering-in-place-while-police-handle-barricade-situation-on-timonium-road |
HOWARD COUNTY, Md. — Howard County police are investigating a fatal single-vehicle crash that occurred in Columbia overnight.
Around 11:38 p.m., a 2023 Tesla Model 3 was traveling eastbound on Route 175 when it drove through the center of the intersection and struck a guard rail followed by a traffic pole.
Police say the driver and sole occupant, Bran Jesus Chaparro, 28, of Texas, was pronounced dead at the scene.
Route 175 eastbound from Snowden River Pkwy to I-95 was closed for several hours due to traffic signal outages caused by the collision. | https://www.wmar2news.com/local/texas-man-killed-in-vehicle-crash-in-howard-county | 2023-06-23T16:37:02 | 0 | https://www.wmar2news.com/local/texas-man-killed-in-vehicle-crash-in-howard-county |
Foul play suspected in Nikola Motor fires that damaged 4 electric semitrucks, company says
Phoenix and Tempe fire crews battled multiple electric vehicle fires Friday morning at the Nikola Motor Co. headquarters in Phoenix.
Crews responded to the scene, near 40th Street and Broadway in Phoenix, just before 5 a.m., according to Phoenix Fire spokesperson Capt. Todd Keller.
A total of four semitrucks were lost to the fire.
"We prevented the extension to the other semis, so we're just right now cooling these cells down," Keller told The Arizona Republic, referring to the trucks' lithium batteries.
According to a tweet from the motor company, no one was injured in the fire, but foul play is suspected.
"Foul play is suspected as a vehicle was seen in the area of the affected trucks just prior to the incident and an investigation is underway," the company said in the post.
Phoenix Fire officials urged the public to avoid the area.
No other information had been released. | https://www.azcentral.com/story/news/local/phoenix-breaking/2023/06/23/trucks-damaged-fire-nikola-motor-co-phoenix-headquarters/70350221007/ | 2023-06-23T16:41:55 | 1 | https://www.azcentral.com/story/news/local/phoenix-breaking/2023/06/23/trucks-damaged-fire-nikola-motor-co-phoenix-headquarters/70350221007/ |
An 86-mile stretch of the Pennsylvania Turnpike will be closed westbound starting at 11 p.m. on Saturday between the Breezewood (Exit 161) and New Stanton (Exit 75) interchanges. The road will reopen at approximately 6 a.m. on Sunday.
Motorists should plan for a lengthy detour or should avoid that area of Interstate 70/76 during that time, the Pennsylvania Turnpike Commission advises.
The seven-hour closure is needed for road work to implement an interim traffic crossover as part of the next phase of a reconstruction project in Somerset County. The $117 million project for reconstruction and widening from two lanes to three lanes in each direction began in 2021 and is expected to be completed in the fall of 2024.
The more than 100-mile detour is necessary to accommodate the volume of diverted traffic, according to the PA Turnpike Commission. Travelers should expect higher than normal traffic volumes on the detour route. Message boards will be placed to inform drivers of the closure.
Vehicles will be able to enter the Turnpike at the Donegal Interchange (Exit 91) and travel westbound during this closure. All eastbound traffic is permitted in the corridor during the westbound closure.
Information will be posted and announcements will be made prior to the closure at the North Midway Service Plaza in Bedford County and the Somerset North Service Plaza in Somerset County warning customers of the impending closure. If customers remain in the service plaza after 11 p.m. on Saturday, they will be required to stay there until the road reopens.
Visit 511/511pa.com for more information.
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The official start of summer means more boats in Pittsburgh’s three rivers, and as the Fourth of July approaches, plenty of people will be out and about enjoying the Allegheny.
But just like with any body of water, danger could be hidden in plain sight. Near the Highland Park Bridge, it’s the area of the Allegheny River Lock and Dam — a sharp drop-off on the other side of the bridge.
“You can’t see it from upstream. It does have that ‘infinity pool’ effect,” said David Conrad of the Army Corps of Engineers.
As a result, boaters on the Allegheny River might have noticed something new: bright red warning signs, seven-feet high and 14-feet wide that can be seen from up to a half-mile away. The signs restrict boaters from going under part of the Highland Park Bridge to avoid the dam that many people don’t know is there.
“If you’re just buzzing along, you wouldn’t see it because it just blends, and that’s why these buoys here, to stop anyone from going that way, I think is pretty important,” said Troy Garrison, who fishes in the area.
“Those, in conjunction with the signs, make a very complete, comprehensive safety system,” Conrad said.
But those two components aren’t the only things needed to stay safe on the water. Experts said vigilance is key, as boats without a motor, like kayaks and canoes, could potentially drift. Engineers said the force of the water at the dam is so strong that a person can drown if they go under, even if they are wearing a life jacket.
“If one person goes over the dam, it’s one too many,” Conrad said. “Know the waterways, take a water safety course, and wear a life jacket.”
Engineers believe the signs will help boaters all year since the buoys will be removed when winter comes.
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PITTSBURGH, Pa. — Pull up a lawn chair, it’s time for fireworks!
The 4th of July is less than a month away and many communities around Western Pennsylvania have already announced when they’ll be holding their annual fireworks displays.
Because Independence Day falls on a Tuesday this year, communities are holding their shows on several different days of the week.
If you’d like us to include an event in your area, email us at content@wpxi.com. Please send the information along with a link to the official posting/information.
If you can’t make it to a fireworks display near you, you can watch the City of Pittsburgh’s Independence Day Fireworks EXCLUSIVELY on Channel 11 at 9:35 p.m. on July 4th!
Allegheny County
City of Pittsburgh
The Pittsburgh Independence Day Celebration returns this year to Point State Park. Festivities go from 4:00 p.m. until 10:00 p.m. on July 4, with fireworks happening at 9:35 p.m. You can CLICK HERE for full details on the city celebration.
Municipality of Bethel Park
The Bethel Park Summer Spectacular will be June 30 with fireworks beginning at 9:40 p.m. Click here for a list of suggested viewing locations.
Dormont Borough
Dormont Day 2023 will be Tuesday, July 4 from 7 p.m. until 10 p.m. at the Dormont Pool Parking Lot and Hillside. Fireworks start around 9:30 p.m.
Findlay Township
The Findlay Township Independence Day celebration will be held July 3, with fireworks at the Recreations and Sports Complex at 9:30 p.m.
Franklin Park Borough
The Festival in the Park Bicentennial Edition will be July 24 at Blueberry Hill Park. Events being at 4 p.m. with fireworks at dusk. More details can be found here.
Hampton Township
Hampton Community Day will be Monday, July 3 and will feature fireworks that evening.
Leetsdale Borough
Leetsdale will have a parade, food trucks, live music, and fireworks on the 4th of July. More details can be found here.
Moon Township
The Moon Township 4th of July Celebration will be held at Moon Park on July 4 starting at 4 p.m. and fireworks capping the night off at 10 p.m.
Mount Lebanon Township
The all day celebration will begin at noon on July 4 at Mt. Lebanon Park. Fireworks are expected to begin around 9 p.m. More details can be found here.
Ohio Township
Fireworks in Ohio Township will be a few weeks after the 4th on July 22 during the annual community day. Details on that event are here.
Pine Township
Pine Township Community Day will be held July 15 from 4 p.m. until 9 p.m. and will include fireworks at the end of the night!
Ross Township
The Ross Township Independence Day Celebration will be July 2 with activities all day. Fireworks will begin at 9:30 p.m. at 1000 Ross Municipal Drive.
Scott Township
Fireworks will take place on July 4 at 9:30 p.m. at Scott Park.
South Fayette Township and Upper St. Clair Township
The joint fireworks presentation will be held on July 4 at 9:30 p.m. in Fairview Park. There will be limited parking in the park and additional parking will be at Boyce Mayview Park.
Beaver County
BOOM! on the Bridge
The huge community event in Beaver is on Saturday, June 24 from 3-10 p.m. It will feature artists, beer gardens, local food purveyors and food trucks and music. Headlining this year is the country music duo Big & Rich. Fireworks start at 9:45 p.m.
Hopewell Township
The Hopewell Park Fest Community Day will be July 8 from 3 p.m. until 9:30 p.m. at the Hopewell Township Community Park. Fireworks will cap the celebration at the end of the night.
Butler County
Big Butler Fair
This year’s Big Butler Fair runs from June 30-July 8 at the Big Butler Fairgrounds. Fireworks on July 4th will start shortly after dusk. More info on the entire fair can be found HERE.
Evans City
The Evans City 4th of July Fireworks will be held on Sunday, July 2 at 9 p.m.
Zelienople Borough
The Zelienople 4th of July celebrations include at parade, 5K, live music, and more! Fireworks will be at dusk (approximately 10:00 p.m.) at Zelienople Community Park on the 4th of July. Full details can be found HERE.
Fayette County
Connellsville
Red, White and Boom will be held on Saturday, July 1 on Arch Street starting at 3 p.m. The event will include food, music, vendors, beer and more. Fireworks start at 9:45 p.m.
Uniontown
The City of Uniontown Founding Day is taking place on July 1st and 2nd. Fireworks will take place on July 2nd around 9:30 p.m. Fireworks are best viewed in the vicinity of the Uniontown Mall. For more information, click here.
Greene County
Waynesburg
Waynesburg’s 2023 July 4th Celebration takes place on July 4 from 7 a.m. to 10 p.m. The day will include fun festivities, music and a firework show, which is scheduled to start around 9:30 p.m.
Indiana County
Indiana
Indiana’s Star Spangled Celebration at Mack Park Fairgrounds is happening on Tuesday, July 4 from 12 p.m. to 10 p.m. Food vendors, craft & vendor show, kids zone, basket raffle, wine & beer garden, music, a veterans salute and fireworks are all part of the big day.
Lawrence County
Ellwood City
The Ellwood City Festival takes place July 30 through July 2. Enjoy crafts, children’s activities, food booths, art exhibitions, entertainment and closing fireworks on July 2.
New Castle
The Freedom Fair & Fireworks Festival will be held on July 29 from noon to 10 p.m. in downtown New Castle. In addition to fireworks at dusk, there will be performers, food trucks, live music and more.
New Wilmington
Westminster College’s annual Independence Day celebration will feature a free concert and fireworks on July 3. The event begins at 7:30 p.m. and fireworks start at 9:15 p.m.
Mercer County
Sharon
The Shenango Riverfront Fireworks Celebration will be held on Sunday, July 1 from 6-9 p.m. at Quaker Steak & Lube and the Chestnut Street Parking Lot. Festivities will include live music, food trucks, kids activities and a night market, as well as fireworks.
Washington County
Canonsburg
The Canonsburg 4th of July Celebration is an all day affair with a parade at 10 a.m. and fireworks at 10 p.m. CLICK HERE for a full list of details.
City of Washington
Spark at the Park returns for an afternoon of activities, live music, and fireworks at Washington Park and Pool at 9:40 p.m.
Westmoreland County
Idlewild and Soak Zone
Idlewild and Soak Zone will have a special fireworks display on July 4 at 9:30 p.m.
Latrobe
Fireworks will cap off the Greater Latrobe 4th of July Celebration at 9:45 p.m. More details can be found on their Facebook page HERE.
Mount Pleasant Borough
Party in the Park will be held on July 3 with fireworks capping off the evening at 10:00 p.m. at Veterans Park.
If you’d like us to include an event in your area, email us at content@wpxi.com. Please send the information along with a link to the official posting/information.
©2023 Cox Media Group | https://www.wpxi.com/news/local/fourth-july-2023-town-by-town-list-fireworks-displays-pittsburgh-area/JVDOIYC6DVHGLJLKTWC3ZHR6CQ/ | 2023-06-23T16:47:06 | 0 | https://www.wpxi.com/news/local/fourth-july-2023-town-by-town-list-fireworks-displays-pittsburgh-area/JVDOIYC6DVHGLJLKTWC3ZHR6CQ/ |
The Pittsburgh Penguins are scheduled to play home-and-home exhibition games against Buffalo, Columbus and Detroit this fall.
That is the same preseason regimen they have had for a number of years.
It wasn’t immediately clear whether they plan any other exhibition games, because the version of their schedule below has been pieced together using announcements made by the teams they will be facing.
Read more from our partners at Sports Now Group Pittsburgh.
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PITTSBURGH — All the occupants of a Brighton Heights home that caught fire Friday morning were able to escape.
The house, located in the 3800 block of Wealth Street, caught fire around 11 a.m., according to officials.
A fire chief at the scene told Channel 11 the call came in as a bedroom fire. He said smoke was showing on the second floor.
The residents and a dog were able to get out through the front door. No injuries were reported.
There was smoke damage and a small amount of damage from flames, the chief said.
There is no word on what started the fire.
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©2023 Cox Media Group | https://www.wpxi.com/news/local/occupants-pets-escape-brighton-heights-fire/X72DKFLXFBENDDZL7JYSEN7DX4/ | 2023-06-23T16:47:18 | 1 | https://www.wpxi.com/news/local/occupants-pets-escape-brighton-heights-fire/X72DKFLXFBENDDZL7JYSEN7DX4/ |
RICHARDSON, Texas — Editor's note: This article originally appeared in the Dallas Business Journal.
In its hunt to relocate its headquarters from Virginia to Texas, the National Rifle Association has scoped out office space in Richardson that State Farm Insurance is trying to unload.
The NRA’s headquarters is currently in Fairfax, Virginia. The gun rights organization is searching for 200,000 to 300,000 square feet of office space to house its new headquarters, said Dallas-Fort Worth commercial real estate veteran Steve Triolet, senior vice president of Research and Market Forecasting Operations for Partners Real Estate.
“They’ve toured the State Farm facility in Richardson,” said Triolet, who is based in Dallas. “They’ve got it down to a shorter list where they have physically inspected properties. That doesn't mean that they will ultimately land in Richardson or Dallas-Fort Worth. They could go somewhere else in Texas.”
The NRA filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in early 2021 to reorganize its business and said it plans to register as a nonprofit in Texas. The association has been a registered nonprofit in New York for more than 150 years, even though its physical headquarters is in northern Virginia.
In May 2021, Judge Harlin Hale of the U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Dallas dismissed the NRA’s petition for bankruptcy reorganization, but the association said afterward it is still exploring a headquarters move to Texas, where it has more than 400,000 members. The group has more than 5 million members nationwide.
The NRA has hired commercial real estate firm Colliers to lease and potentially purchase an office building in DFW for its new headquarters, according to a June 20 report by real estate information service CoStar.
“Texas heads the list” for the NRA’s potential headquarters relocation, an association spokesman told CoStar in an email, according to the June 20 article.
Triolet said he thinks DFW is the frontrunner to land the NRA headquarters, followed by Houston, then San Antonio.
Illinois-based State Farm has four high-rise office towers in the large CityLine development at President George Bush Turnpike and Plano Road in Richardson and is looking ideally to sublease one or two of them to a single tenant per building, Triolet said. The buildings total more than 2 million square feet, and all four are about the same size.
“They don’t want to carve them up,” Triolet said. “They're looking for a user to take one or potentially more than one of those properties. That's hard to find.”
State Farm has far fewer workers in the CityLine buildings than before the pandemic and has publicly said it’s seeking to downsize its office footprint nationwide. Since the pandemic, the insurer has outsourced some jobs and adopted a more flexible office working environment in Richardson and nationally.
Triolet said that State Farm employees occupy less than half of the total space in the four Richardson towers on an average day.
“They could easily get rid of two buildings if they wanted to and they can find a taker,” he said.
The NRA has strong ties to Texas and its membership concentration in the state. The association will hold its 2024 annual meeting in Dallas next May and held its 2022 annual meeting in Houston.
The association has been embroiled in a legal showdown in New York since 2020, when Attorney General Letitia James filed a lawsuit against the organization. The suit alleges the NRA illegally diverted millions of dollars from the group's charitable mission to benefit senior leadership, close associates and friends. A trial is tentatively scheduled for this fall.
More Texas headlines: | https://www.wfaa.com/article/news/local/nra-headquarters-relocation-state-farm-richardson/287-a542e531-11e7-46a6-9a6f-b4dd47380bd3 | 2023-06-23T16:48:08 | 0 | https://www.wfaa.com/article/news/local/nra-headquarters-relocation-state-farm-richardson/287-a542e531-11e7-46a6-9a6f-b4dd47380bd3 |
FORT WORTH, Texas — An officer in training and two firefighters were injured due to a lightning strike Friday, according to the Fort Worth Police Department and Fort Worth Fire Department.
Around 11:15 a.m. Friday, Fort Worth police said that a cadet had possibly been struck by lightning in the ankle and had been transported to a local hospital. Officials said he is in good condition.
Minutes later, two firefighters were also reportedly injured due to the lightning strike, according to the Fort Worth Fire Department. However, the firefighters' injuries are considered minor and they will remain on duty, officials said.
Officials have not yet provided more details as to where this happened or who the victims are.
This is a developing situation. We will update with more information as it is provided. | https://www.wfaa.com/article/news/local/officer-firefighters-fort-worth-lightning-strike-cadet-friday/287-234962e2-8006-47d8-89bd-034073a0e0a2 | 2023-06-23T16:48:14 | 0 | https://www.wfaa.com/article/news/local/officer-firefighters-fort-worth-lightning-strike-cadet-friday/287-234962e2-8006-47d8-89bd-034073a0e0a2 |
SOUTHLAKE, Texas — Drivers in Southlake dealt with some backed-up traffic Friday morning as they headed into work.
There was a two-car crash involving an 18-wheeler westbound on Highway 114 near the Kimball on-ramp, according to the Southlake Department of Public Safety. This is near Gateway Church and Dragon Stadium.
As of 7:30 a.m., all westbound lanes of Highway 114 were closed near Kimball. At 9:47 a.m., Highway 114 had been reopened, Southlake DPS said.
This is a developing story. We will update as we get more information. | https://www.wfaa.com/article/news/local/westbound-lanes-of-highway-114-closed-in-southlake-june-2023/287-0474bf5d-dc40-43ea-83db-f645ef3eb551 | 2023-06-23T16:48:20 | 0 | https://www.wfaa.com/article/news/local/westbound-lanes-of-highway-114-closed-in-southlake-june-2023/287-0474bf5d-dc40-43ea-83db-f645ef3eb551 |
NEW ORLEANS — Pet rescues across New Orleans are pleading with the city to step up and help with the staggering number of pets being surrendered.
One rescue shelter said they are getting 20 surrender requests a day, but they have a solution that could save the animals.
Zeus' Rescues shared their Nest camera video with Eyewitness News, and it's heartbreaking to watch. One person lifted their dog over the fence and left it there. In the middle of the day, someone else tied their dog up out front, the dog calling out for its owner. And another opened the front gate, leading their dog inside, only to leave without it.
Michelle Ingram with Zeus' Rescues said it's an overpopulation crisis.
"I've never seen anything like this in years, even in the Baton Rouge flood and after Hurricane Ida," Ingram said.
Ingram said she gets 20 calls a day from people asking to surrender their pet, but the rescue is at capacity.
"When push comes to shove and you don't have enough money to feed your kids and your pet, you're going to feed your kids," Ingram said.
Rescues presented a plan to the city council's "Animal Welfare Oversight Committee," that would essentially require all city agencies to work together to decrease the number of pets in shelters through education and prevention.
New Orleans has a problem with owners overbreeding and not spaying or neutering their pets. The proposed animal welfare oversight committee would advocate for free spay and neutering.
"That would be a win win for everybody," Ingram said.
Councilwoman Lesli Harris said in part, "My office has received complaints from residents about the LA-SPCA’s delayed response times, which is something that needs to be addressed."
Genie Goldring from the Inner Pup, which provides vet care to keep pets out of shelters, said the city is facing a huge animal welfare problem.
"There is so much insecurity between housing, financial and job insecurity," said Goldring.
She too is calling for the Louisiana SPCA to step up, saying, "It would make the LA-SPCA accountable ... we don't have a good handle on what they're doing."
Audrey Jarnagin recently adopted a kitten.
"Its so sad to think so many animals will never know what it's like to live in a loving home cause so many people are not able to get their animals spayed or neutered," Jarnagin said.
The Louisiana SPCA said in a statement, "New Orleans Humane Law & Rescue responds to emergencies within the hour. Calls that come in that are not emergencies and outside of our normal business hours or holidays are responded to the next business day ... Our officers are dispatched only through OPCD, in the same ways that any other emergency service is dispatched."
► Get breaking news from your neighborhood delivered directly to you by downloading the new FREE WWL-TV News app now in the IOS App Store or Google Play. | https://www.kens5.com/article/news/local/pet-owners-rescue-animal-shelter-new-orleans-louisiana/289-d03ded5e-e83f-4c43-b61f-847907d820b7 | 2023-06-23T16:48:47 | 1 | https://www.kens5.com/article/news/local/pet-owners-rescue-animal-shelter-new-orleans-louisiana/289-d03ded5e-e83f-4c43-b61f-847907d820b7 |
HAMMOND — A federal judge Friday ordered former GOP Portage Mayor James Snyder to surrender himself Oct. 16 to begin serving a 21-month prison term for his bribery and tax violation convictions.
Federal prosecutors sought to have 45-year-old Snyder turn himself in by Tuesday, but that request was denied by U.S. District Judge Matthew Kennelly.
During the Friday morning telephonic hearing, Kennelly referred to defense hopes of a successful appeal, specifically on the bribery charge, but said it remains a longshot.
"This is a really old case," he said.
In arguing for a delay in Snyder's surrender, defense attorney Andréa E. Gambino said, "We're not finished with the appeals process."
Snyder intends to seek another appellate hearing, as well as potentially seek to have the case heard by the Supreme Court, she said in a filing before the court.
"Mr. Snyder has received offers from several large firms with Supreme Court practices, to assist him in preparing a petition for a writ of certiorari to the United States Supreme Court," according to the defense. "These offers express the view that the Supreme Court is likely to grant certiorari on the issue."
The action in the case comes just more than a week after the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 7th Circuit rejected all of Snyder's claims of error in his case, which upheld his convictions.
"Now that the judgment has been affirmed, it is appropriate to revoke the defendant’s bond and have the defendant surrender to the custody of the Federal Bureau of Prisons," Amarjeet Bhachu, special attorney for the United States, had written in his request for a more immediate surrender.
The motion references federal code "permitting bond pending appeal only when appeal presents a 'substantial question of law' likely to result in reversal or new trial."
"In view of the fact that this matter has been pending for a considerable period, the government respectfully requests that the defendant be ordered to surrender within seven days, on or before June 27, 2023," the motion reads.
The accused was taken into custody and a search of the home led to the recovery of evidence that was consistent with narcotics trafficking, according to police.
The sentence, passed down Kennelly in October 2021, was well below the recommended sentencing guideline of 46 to 57 months on Snyder's federal bribery and tax violation convictions.
Kennelly then in December 2021 granted Snyder's request to remain out on bond while appealing his convictions, one of which had been affirmed during two different trials.
Snyder was found guilty of soliciting and accepting a $13,000 bribe in 2014 in return for steering a $1.125 million contract for the purchase of garbage trucks for the city of Portage to the local Great Lakes Peterbilt company. Additionally, federal prosecutors said he obstructed the Internal Revenue Service's efforts to collect unpaid taxes on a private mortgage company he ran.
He was tried and found guilty in February 2019. When Snyder’s attorneys moved for a judgment of acquittal or a new trial, the district court denied the motion for acquittal but granted Snyder a new trial on the bribery charge. He was convicted for a second time in March 2021.
In an appeal argued before the court in January, Snyder’s defense team said his rights were violated when the government seized email communications between him and his attorney as part of the discovery of evidence in the case.
"Our thoughts and prayers go out to the family and friends of Derek Hartz during this difficult time," Porter County police said.
The government maintained the integrity of its investigation through a filtering process in which federal agents determine which emails are considered “privileged” communications that should not be disclosed to the prosecution.
"The emails had been seized and the filter process completed before Snyder was indicted in November 2016, and only at that time did his Sixth Amendment right to counsel attach," the appellate court wrote. The court also concluded that seizure of Snyder’s emails under the warrant did not violate the particularity requirement of the Fourth Amendment.
Snyder's team further argued that his conviction was not supported by sufficient evidence, which the judges did not find to be legitimate.
"The evidence here was sufficient to support the jury’s verdict," the judges said. "Evidence at trial established that Snyder owed personal and payroll taxes and that the IRS had taken ‘specific, targeted’ steps to collect by levying Snyder’s personal and business bank accounts."
Snyder’s legal team took additional action in March, suing the city of Portage, Democratic Mayor Sue Lynch and city attorney Dan Whitten, accusing the two of instructing city employees, including case witness Randall Reeder Jr., to not meet with Snyder and his legal team as they prepared for his second trial.
Attorneys for the city, Lynch and Whitten filed a motion in May to dismiss. Snyder’s legal team has five days to respond to the motion, according to federal court records.
Gallery: Recent arrests booked into the Porter County Jail
A federal judge Friday ordered former GOP Portage Mayor James Snyder to surrender himself Oct. 16 to begin serving a 21-month prison term for his bribery and tax violation convictions. | https://www.nwitimes.com/news/local/crime-courts/former-gop-portage-mayor-snyder-given-surrender-date-to-begin-federal-bribery-tax-prison-sentence/article_48be176c-11c4-11ee-bd18-13397e4c3ab5.html | 2023-06-23T16:51:21 | 1 | https://www.nwitimes.com/news/local/crime-courts/former-gop-portage-mayor-snyder-given-surrender-date-to-begin-federal-bribery-tax-prison-sentence/article_48be176c-11c4-11ee-bd18-13397e4c3ab5.html |
A new Crown Staffing office in the Region donated to Franciscan Health Foundation's Food Insecurity Program to help feed those in need.
The family-owned regional employment services agency, which dates back to 1968, has offices in Indiana, Illinois, Wisconsin, Michigan, Ohio, Nebraska, Kentucky, Missouri, Kansas, South Carolina, Florida, Alabama and Tennessee. It did a food drive to benefit Franciscan’s Food Insecurity Program and Fresh Start Markets to celebrate its new Dyer office at 910 Richard Rd, Suite B, in Dyer.
The Franciscan Health Foundation and the Food Bank of Northwest Indiana partnered to address food security across Northwest Indiana, including by running food pantries in Crown Point and Hammond where the needy can shop free of charge for healthy, nutritious food.
People can get food assistance at designated times at Fresh Start Market food pantries at the Women’s Specialty and Dialysis Center Entrance at 5454 Hohman Ave. in Hammond and the Physician Network St. Clare Health Center at 1121 S. Indiana Ave. in Crown Point.
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The Fresh Start Markets accept donations from the general public.
“The service we provide to the community with the help of our donors is vital in a county that is experiencing an almost 15% food insecurity rate,” said MinDee Richard, director of development for the Franciscan Health Foundation. “Thank you to Crown Staffing and best of luck with this new location.”
For more information or to sign up for assistance, call 219-407-6948.
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NWI Business Ins and Outs: Pierogi stand, Brown Skin Coffee and Alpha Family Resale opening; Ixxa and Dan's Pierogies updating | https://www.nwitimes.com/news/local/new-crown-staffing-office-donates-to-franciscan-food-insecurity-program/article_5b8fd6b0-1083-11ee-acd4-233d17e979ab.html | 2023-06-23T16:51:27 | 0 | https://www.nwitimes.com/news/local/new-crown-staffing-office-donates-to-franciscan-food-insecurity-program/article_5b8fd6b0-1083-11ee-acd4-233d17e979ab.html |
UChicago Medicine AdventHealth was named the official healthcare partner of the upcoming NASCAR Chicago Street Race.
UChicago Medicine, which has offices in Northwest Indiana and Calumet City and is building a micro-hospital in Crown Point, will furnish doctors and nurses to the infield care center to provide medical care for drivers, crew and NASCAR staff if needed. It has naming rights to the infield center in Grant Park.
UChicago Medicine in Chicago's Hyde Park neighborhood has a controlling interest in UChicago Medicine AdventHealth, which has hospitals in Bolingbrook, Glendale Heights, Hinsdale and La Grange, and a network of nearly 50 physicians’ offices and outpatient sites.
“As a Level 1 trauma center and an EMS resource hospital on the South Side, we know we have a critical role to play by having our top-notch physicians and nurses onsite at the Chicago Street Race during this race,” said Tom Jackiewicz, president of UChicago Medicine. “Like NASCAR, providing high-quality emergency medical care takes a team working together, so we will be ready to provide medical direction and medical care.”
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Florida-based AdventHealth, which has 50 hospital campuses in nine states, has long sponsored NASCAR and is an official health care provider at Daytona International Speedway.
“We are proud to deepen our relationship with AdventHealth at the inaugural Chicago Street Race Weekend,” said Julie Giese, Chicago Street Race President. “As a longtime partner at Daytona International Speedway, AdventHealth has always demonstrated an ability to support the health and safety of our personnel, and we look forward to bringing that same high standard of care to the Chicago Street Race Weekend by working with UChicago Medicine AdventHealth.”
The race will take place on a 12-turn, 2.2-mile street course in the Loop on July 1 and 2 during the Fourth of July weekend. The Chainsmokers, Miranda Lambert, The Black Crowes and Charley Crocket will perform concerts in Grant Park as part of the festivities.
“As an organization with a rich history of partnership with the Daytona International Speedway and its drivers, we’re thrilled to be the Official Health Care Partner for the first-ever Chicago Street Race,” said Thor Thordarson, president and CEO of UChicago Medicine AdventHealth. “We have the experience not only to provide top-level care at NASCAR races, but also as a leader in providing whole-person health care in the Chicagoland area.”
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NWI Business Ins and Outs: Pierogi stand, Brown Skin Coffee and Alpha Family Resale opening; Ixxa and Dan's Pierogies updating | https://www.nwitimes.com/news/local/uchicago-medicine-adventhealth-named-nascar-chicago-street-races-official-health-care-partner/article_bace031a-10c7-11ee-a278-f75adb6a6409.html | 2023-06-23T16:51:34 | 0 | https://www.nwitimes.com/news/local/uchicago-medicine-adventhealth-named-nascar-chicago-street-races-official-health-care-partner/article_bace031a-10c7-11ee-a278-f75adb6a6409.html |
What to Know
- Marking the culmination of Pride Month in the city, the pièce de résistance is undoubtedly the NYC Pride March, which will take place on Sunday at noon.
- More than 75 percent of all marching groups are non-profit organizations, and more than half of all marching groups are participating free-of-charge, according to the event's organizers.
- Thousands are expected to attend and participate in the day's festivities.
Marking the culmination of Pride Month in the city, the pièce de résistance is undoubtedly the NYC Pride March, which will take place on Sunday at noon.
With more than 75 percent of all marching groups are non-profit organizations, and more than half of all marching groups are participating free-of-charge, according to the event's organizers, thousands are expected to attend and participate in the day's festivities.
Here is everything you need to know about the 2023 NYC Pride March:
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NYC PRIDE PARADE
The New York City Pride March will begin at 25th Street and 5th Avenue. The parade will head south on 5th Avenue before heading west on 8th Street
After crossing 6th Avenue, the Pride March will continue on Christopher Street past the Stonewall National Monument. It will then turn north on 7th Avenue, past the New York City AIDS Memorial, before dispersing in Chelsea at 16th Street and 7th Avenue.
News
Kick-off time
The NYC Pride March kicks off at noon Sunday, June 25.
Street closures
- 4th Avenue between 9th Street and 14th Street
- 13th Street between 3rd Avenue and Broadway
- 12th Street between Broadway and 3rd Avenue
- 11th Street between 4th Avenue and 3rd Avenue
- 10th Street between 3rd Avenue and Broadway
- 9th Avenue between 3rd Avenue and Broadway
- 8th Avenue between 3rd Avenue and Broadway
- Astor Place between Lafayette Street and 3rd Avenue
- Lafayette Street between East 9th Street
- Wanamaker Place and Astor Place
Grand Marshals for the 2023 NYC Pride March
The grand marshals who will lead this year's NYC Pride are: Grammy, Emmy and two-time Tony Award-winner Billy Porter, award-winning British asexual activist Yasmin Benoit, activist AC Dumlao, artist and activist Hope Giselle, and trailblazing civil rights and LGBTQ+ activist Randolfe “Randy” Wicker.
For more information, click here. | https://www.nbcnewyork.com/news/local/nyc-pride-march-2023-what-you-need-to-know/4447766/ | 2023-06-23T16:56:01 | 0 | https://www.nbcnewyork.com/news/local/nyc-pride-march-2023-what-you-need-to-know/4447766/ |
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The Lineup | https://www.nbcphiladelphia.com/news/local/the-lineup/nearly-ready-to-roll-on-i-95-the-lineup/3591315/ | 2023-06-23T16:57:48 | 1 | https://www.nbcphiladelphia.com/news/local/the-lineup/nearly-ready-to-roll-on-i-95-the-lineup/3591315/ |
COLUMBIA, Pa. — Riverfest 2023 kicks off in Columbia today.
The all-weekend festival commemorates the burning of the Columbia-Wrightsville Bridge during the Civil War. On the last Sunday in June 1863, locals prevented Confederate troops from crossing the river and moving toward Harrisburg or Philadelphia. Confederate troops were forced to turn back, and just three days later, the Battle of Gettysburg erupted.
“We’re really looking to connect a lot of the local history to this big national story,” said Sophie Vayansky, program coordinator with Susquehanna National Heritage Area.
A Riverfest Exhibit found inside the Columbia Crossing River Trail Center tells the story of the locals who prevented troops from moving to Harrisburg or Philadelphia. A number of newspaper clippings and paintings depicting the burning of the bridge and lectures will be on display throughout the weekend.
“We’re working with heritage partners in the area, local museums and organizations who will be giving different tours and experiences throughout the weekend,” said Vayansky.
Events and programs include:
- Bridge Burner Run and Paddle Challenge
- Riverfest Trolley Tours
- Outdoor Rec Expo
- Marietta Walking Tour
- Susquehanna Travelers Concert
- Fire Performance
Food trucks and other vendors will also be at Riverfest throughout the weekend. With the weekend forecast in mind, all events happening Sunday evening will be moved to Columbia Crossing River Trail Center. For more information on Riverfest, click here. | https://www.fox43.com/article/news/local/burning-of-columbia-wrightsville-bridge-riverfest-battle-of-gettysburg/521-9b86c11b-1e05-4bc0-9423-0441afca42a2 | 2023-06-23T17:00:02 | 1 | https://www.fox43.com/article/news/local/burning-of-columbia-wrightsville-bridge-riverfest-battle-of-gettysburg/521-9b86c11b-1e05-4bc0-9423-0441afca42a2 |
CARLISLE, Pa. — Police are searching for the owner of a dog that bit a person at a Cumberland County park earlier this month.
The incident happened on June 7 at Letort Park in Carlisle, authorities said.
According to Carlisle Police, the victim reported they were bitten by a brown dog that was running off-leash near the park's softball fields.
The dog's owner took the dog and left the scene without providing any information to the victim regarding the dog's vaccination status or the owner's contact information, police said.
The victim was transported to a local hospital for treatment, according to police.
The pictured man and dog match the description provided by the victim, police said. Investigators believe the man and dog left the scene in a silver pickup trick.
Anyone with any information regarding the identity of the pictured man or the dog is encouraged to contact Carlisle Police at (717) 243-5252. | https://www.fox43.com/article/news/local/cumberland-county/police-search-dog-bite-owner-carlisle-letort-park/521-53c7a5d0-0d8b-49ba-b56e-680e263581da | 2023-06-23T17:00:08 | 1 | https://www.fox43.com/article/news/local/cumberland-county/police-search-dog-bite-owner-carlisle-letort-park/521-53c7a5d0-0d8b-49ba-b56e-680e263581da |
DAUPHIN COUNTY, Pa. — The Highspire Police Department is investigating after human remains were found at Reservoir Park yesterday.
Highspire Public Safety Director, Mark Stonbraker, says some youths were fishing at the reservoir when they found bones in a heavily-wooded section of the park. The Dauphin County Coroner's Office confirmed that the bones were, in fact, human remains.
Authorities have not yet identified the remains.
Citizen’s Fire Company #1, of Highspire, assisted in clearing the brush to access the location and provided lighting so that the Highspire Police Department and the Dauphin County Forensics Team could begin processing the scene. The investigation is ongoing. | https://www.fox43.com/article/news/local/human-remains-reservoir-park-harrisburg/521-3c8cd057-30df-4a76-a312-0a42904a7469 | 2023-06-23T17:00:14 | 0 | https://www.fox43.com/article/news/local/human-remains-reservoir-park-harrisburg/521-3c8cd057-30df-4a76-a312-0a42904a7469 |
YORK COUNTY, Pa. — Update, 11:15 a.m.: Fairview Township Police reported the incident was resolved with no injuries. Additional details regarding the incident are forthcoming, police said.
Previously
A shelter in place order has been issued for some residents of Fairview Township after reports of large police presence in the area.
According to the alert sent by York County Emergency Management, residents within a quarter-mile of the 500 block of Kellinger Road in Fairview Township have been asked to shelter in place, and that the road is closed at Kellinger and Scully Place.
Officials say that the order sent out at 9:15 a.m. on June 23 is in place due to a barricaded person, and that the incident is ongoing.
This is a developing story. FOX43 will provide more information as it becomes available. | https://www.fox43.com/article/news/local/shelter-in-place-order-issued-york-county-residents-police/521-362c233f-9f9a-4b74-86d5-4d4f486a9923 | 2023-06-23T17:00:21 | 1 | https://www.fox43.com/article/news/local/shelter-in-place-order-issued-york-county-residents-police/521-362c233f-9f9a-4b74-86d5-4d4f486a9923 |
YORK, Pa. — The former principal of a York County charter school was sentenced to five years of probation for fraudulently obtaining and misusing federal grant money, U.S. Attorney Gerard M. Karam announced Friday.
Leonard Hart, 50, of Mount Wolf, was also ordered to pay back the more than $55,000 he received in fraudulent reimbursement requests between 2018 and 2020, when he was principal at the Lincoln Charter School in York, Karam said.
According to Karam, LCS is a recipient of federal program funds because it receives grants funded by the U.S Department of Education—primarily Title I funding, which is financial assistance for schools with high numbers of children from low-income backgrounds.
Hart served as principal and CEO of LCS from 2013 to 2021, Karam said. The school offers a program by which employees are able to get partial tuition reimbursement for furthering their education.
Karam said Hart misrepresented that he was pursuing a Ph.D. and submitted numerous requests for reimbursement for courses that he falsely claimed he was taking from a couple of universities.
He also falsified records to support these claims for tuition reimbursement and pressured a lower-level employee of the school and former LCS student to assist him in creating a forged diploma, according to Karam.
Hart admitted to submitting to LCS nearly 20 false and fraudulent reimbursement requests between 2018 and 2020.
At sentencing, Hart presented a check for $10,000 toward his total restitution payments, Karam said.
The case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorney Ravi Romel Sharma prosecuted the case. | https://www.fox43.com/article/news/local/york-county/former-principal-lincoln-charter-school-york-misuse-of-funds-leonard-hart/521-7c29181d-d498-4f53-8832-4b72d31d7257 | 2023-06-23T17:00:27 | 1 | https://www.fox43.com/article/news/local/york-county/former-principal-lincoln-charter-school-york-misuse-of-funds-leonard-hart/521-7c29181d-d498-4f53-8832-4b72d31d7257 |
YORK COUNTY, Pa. — The York County Coroner's office is searching for the next of kin for a man who passed away earlier this week.
The coroner says Angel Haddock died at WellSpan York Hospital. He was in his 50s. An autopsy is pending.
Anyone who has information regarding any family of Haddock is asked to call 717-840-7617. | https://www.fox43.com/article/news/local/york-county/york-county-coroner-angel-haddock-next-of-kin-wellspan-hospital/521-97539982-14e9-498a-9f6d-bfe6cb8225bd | 2023-06-23T17:00:34 | 1 | https://www.fox43.com/article/news/local/york-county/york-county-coroner-angel-haddock-next-of-kin-wellspan-hospital/521-97539982-14e9-498a-9f6d-bfe6cb8225bd |
EVERETT, Wash. — The Everett office of OceanGate will be closed indefinitely after five people aboard its submersible were presumed dead, including the company’s CEO.
The company’s offices, which are located on the Everett waterfront, will be closed “while the staff copes with the tragic loss of their team member,” according to a statement released by the Port of Everett.
“This is an extremely sad time for our dedicated employees who are exhausted and grieving deeply over this loss,” OceanGate said in a statement.
OceanGate CEO Stockton Rush was among five people on the Titan submersible, which lost contact about an hour and 45 minutes after it began its journey to the wreckage of the Titanic on Sunday.
British businessman Hamish Harding, French Titanic expert Paul-Henri Nargeolet, and Shahzada and Suleman Dawood, a father and son from a prominent Pakistani family, were also on board.
Several agencies launched an extensive search for the submersible, which covered an area twice the size of Connecticut in waters 2 ½ miles deep.
The Coast Guard announced Thursday there was a “catastrophic implosion” of the submersible after debris was found about 1,600 feet from the Titanic. A senior Navy official told the Associated Press that the U.S. Navy analyzed its acoustic data and found an anomaly that was consistent with an implosion or explosion when communication was lost.
This was the third year that OceanGate has operated expeditions to the Titanic, following trips in 2021 and 2022.
The company takes paying customers to see the Titanic’s wreckage at a price tag of $250,000 per person. Its goal is to document flora and fauna living in the wreckage, document the condition of the wreck and capture data and images to be used for scientific study, in addition to adventure tourism.
However, the company faced allegations of safety concerns even before it launched its first Titanic mission. In 2018, a former OceanGate employee sued the company claiming he was wrongfully terminated after he sounded the alarm about the “potential danger to passengers of the Titan as the submersible reached extreme depths."
That case was settled outside court. | https://www.king5.com/article/news/local/everett/oceangate-everett-offices-closed-indefinitely-submersible-implodes/281-a11aea1f-1542-460c-8c1b-854f984d41a4 | 2023-06-23T17:01:21 | 1 | https://www.king5.com/article/news/local/everett/oceangate-everett-offices-closed-indefinitely-submersible-implodes/281-a11aea1f-1542-460c-8c1b-854f984d41a4 |
SEATTLE — The countdown is on to next month's MLB All-Star game, which will bring week-long festivities with thousands of baseball fans descending on Seattle.
But before they show up, people who call Seattle home will be rolling up their sleeves to tidy up the city.
On Friday morning, hundreds of volunteers will gather outside T-Mobile park to kick off a community clean-up event hosted by The Seattle Metropolitan Chamber of Commerce, Together Washington, and the Seattle Mariners among others.
Seattle could see 100,000 visitors during All-Star Week and generate $50 million in economic activity, according to the Washington Association of Business.
With those kinds of numbers, the goal for the clean-up effort is to pick up litter, remove graffiti, and some landscaping.
Despite the effort, crime is still up in Seattle. In the SoDo neighborhood alone, there were 1,063 incidents of violent crime and 307 this year as of May 31, according to Seattle Police.
Still Rachel Smith, the President and CEO of the Seattle Metropolitan Chamber of Commerce, says big events like the All-Star Game are a way to bring people together, and that's worth celebrating.
"We want to encourage people to be buoyed by the good things that we're seeing and continue to hold leaders accountable and make sure that we make even more progress and that we make it more urgently," said Smith, who commended city efforts like recruiting new police officers and the crisis care levy recently passed in King County.
More than 400 volunteers had signed up as of Thursday afternoon to join the community clean up.
Those volunteers will be split among four areas expected to see high numbers of foot traffic in July, including SoDo, Pioneer Square, Chinatown International-District and the Waterfront.
Watch KING 5's top stories playlist: | https://www.king5.com/article/news/local/seattle/hundreds-expected-all-star-week-community-clean-up-seattle/281-833ed24d-64d6-4a7c-b17e-c0aaf00dc744 | 2023-06-23T17:01:22 | 0 | https://www.king5.com/article/news/local/seattle/hundreds-expected-all-star-week-community-clean-up-seattle/281-833ed24d-64d6-4a7c-b17e-c0aaf00dc744 |
Is your dog scared of thunder? How to help your dog cope when it storms every day in Florida
It's not unusual for your dog to be frightened of loud noises such as thunderstorms and fireworks. But what do you do when you live in Florida in the summer and thunderstorms loom over your house every day?
That's an exaggeration, but not much of one. The Sunshine State sees around 70-100 days a year with at least one thunderstorm. We're the Lightning Capital of the U.S., with fewer lightning flashes than Texas, Oklahoma and Kansas but more people struck by lightning than any other state, according to the National Lightning Safety Council and the National Weather Service.
And that means your dog has a lot to deal with.
Why are dogs scared of thunder?
Thunder and lightning invoke anxiety, fear and panic in many dogs and in some cases cause dogs to become frantic and attempt to damage property or themselves. There are several reasons researchers think dogs react the way they do to thunder:
- Dogs' ears are different. A dog can hear, on average, about 4-5 times as far as a human can, and while we can hear lower frequencies than dogs, up to 20,000 Hz or so, dogs can hear sounds as high as 47,000 to 65,000 Hz. They also can hear sounds too soft for us to detect. It's no wonder they don't like crashing booms and sudden cracks of thunder along with dark skies and howling wind.
- Some studies suggest that dogs, like many other animals, can detect a drop in barometric pressure. The pressure change before and during a storm may cause discomfort and even pain to a dog's sensitive ears.
- Their sensitive noses may be detecting changes in the environment as a storm approaches that make them anxious.
- Then there's static electricity. A dog's coat can build up static electricity during a thunderstorm, especially large dogs and dogs with long or double coats, according to Nicholas Dodman, a veterinary behaviorist at Tufts University and chief scientific officer at the Center for Canine Behavior Studies. A dog already nervous during a storm may get mild shocks when touching its nose to a metal object, the same way we do when we shuffle across a floor and touch a doorknob, he says, which can contribute to the dog's bewilderment and fear.
How can I calm my dog during a thunderstorm?
There are things you can do during a storm and things you can do regularly when it's nice outside to help train your dog to be less anxious when the storms come back.
First, learn to recognize the signs of storm anxiety and respond to them: ears back, tails down, eyes wide, trembling or shaking, lip-licking, yawning, panting, pacing, whining, barking or howling, attempts to hide under furniture or escape, attempts to press close to owners and follow them from room to room can all be signs of storm anxiety.
"When your dog is exhibiting these behaviors, they are communicating to you, 'Hey, I’m afraid. Please help me,'" said certified canine behavior consultant Jamie Gregory. "Listen to what your dog is saying and do everything you can to help them feel more comfortable."
There's no one way to "cure" your dog of storm anxiety, but combinations of multiple methods can help reinforce each other. Some tips include:
- Remain calm and speak in a soothing voice.
- Redirect your dog's attention. Give them a favorite chew toy, play with them or try teaching them a new trick, and reward them with praise or a treat if they respond to you. Don't pet them just to calm them down, as hard as that is to do. You may be rewarding the anxious behavior.
- Close all the windows and doors to muffle the sounds as much as possible and cover windows to block lightning flashes. Move the dog to a quieter space, where the dog can feel safer. If you crate your dog, cover the crate with cardboard or a blanket (but leave plenty of air circulation).
- Play calming music or turn up the TV to help drown out the storm sounds.
- If you believe static may be an issue, bring the dog to a tub or a non-carpeted floor where static buildup is lessened. You can try spraying your dog with anti-frizz spray or running dryer sheets over their coats to help disrupt the static.
- Use a ThunderShirt, a snug jacket that applies pressure all over a dog's body, or anxiety wrap.
- Some dog owners use pheromone sprays or apply a few of drops of lavender on their dog's muzzle to help calm the dog as an addition to other methods.
- Avoid leaving the dog home alone during a storm.
Give the dog a safe space
"It is important to have a safe place you can go with your dog so that they can't see the flash of lightning or the fireworks," Gregory said. "For instance, a closet or bathroom without windows. Put a familiar dog bed or blanket in that space so the dog feels more comfortable. Practice going to this space with your dog now, not just when the scary events are happening."
Get your dog used to storms before they arrive
Consistency is everything to a dog, and the more you can do to get them desensitized to storms the better they'll be able to handle them.
- Practice training your dog to sit and focus on command, which will help you redirect the dog's attention during a storm.
- Play storm sounds at low volumes while your dog is eating or playing. Slowly increase the volume over time.
- Get your dog used to a ThunderShirt by putting it on them slowly, so as not to cause stress. "Let the dog eat, play and sleep in this jacket," Gregory said. That way the dog won't always associate the vest with traumatic times and will tolerate it better.
- Play calming music while your dog is eating or sleeping so that when you play it during an actual storm, they'll associate it with relaxing.
- If you know a storm is coming, play with your dog or take them on a long walk beforehand to help tire them out.
Do ThunderShirts work for dogs?
For some dogs, they seem to help.
A few decades ago, a man named Phil Blizzard tried helping his storm-anxious dog Dosi in a T-shirt with packing tape around it to create mild pressure to simulate the feeling of being swaddled or hugged. His success led him to create the ThunderShirt, a lightweight fabric vest that millions of pet owners have used to calm their furry friends during thunderstorms, travel and trips to the vet.
The ThunderShirt, which runs from about $40 to $60, has Velcro straps that tighten around a dog's chest and abdomen, providing continuous pressure. And they can help: a 2014 study published in The Journal of Veterinary Behavior showed that when the ThunderShirt was worn according to the manufacturer's instructions, the dogs' heart rate increased less on average and they showed fewer signs of anxiety and panic. Dogs wearing shirts that were not tightened properly didn't get the same benefits. Some dogs showed no change at all.
There's no harm in trying one, although if your dog is older or has a heart condition you should check with your vet first. Do not put a ThunderShirt or similar anxiety wrap on your dog during extreme heat, and follow the instructions on how to put it on and how long it's safe to leave on.
The ThunderShirt is the best-known brand but others have appeared on the market, and the American Kennel Club (AKC) has its own.
Can I medicate my dog during thunderstorms? Can I give my dog Benadryl?
If none of these steps help and your dog's anxiety seems to be getting worse, consult your veterinarian to see if a prescribed anti-anxiety medication or antidepressant might be needed.
Some dog owners give their anxious dogs diphenhydramine, commonly known as Benadryl. "While Benadryl is not yet FDA-approved for veterinary use," Anna Burke wrote for the AKC, "it is considered safe for use in dogs and cats and is commonly used in veterinary practices across the U.S."
Veterinarians may suggest Benadryl for dogs with allergies, travel anxiety and motion sickness. The drowsiness effect of Benadryl can help quiet your dog, but it may not actually relieve anxiety and it's at best a temporary fix. For long-term help, concentrate on desensitization and behavior modification through training.
Can I give CBD oil to my dog?
Yes, but. CBD, an abbreviation for "cannabidiol," typically comes from hemp plants and does not contain the narcotic THC which can be toxic and even fatal to dogs. But the science on what CBD does for dogs or what a proper dosage would be is still out and the Food and Drug Administration cautions against it.
"Pet owners really need to be careful,” said Dr. Jerry Klein, the AKC’s chief veterinary officer. "There is not a lot of research out there at the moment." Most of the results produced so far have been anecdotal.
Two studies from Colorado State University and Cornell University show reduced seizures in dogs with epilepsy and decreased pain for dogs with osteoarthritis, but the 16-dog sample size in each study is too small to be definitive, Klein said. An Australian study by a CBD company found its product may reduce itchiness and inflammation. A Cornell University study found that CBD, along with a standard chemotherapy drug, reduced cancer-cell proliferation more than the drug alone. No study has yet shown that CBD reduces anxiety or noise reactivity, according to the AKC.
And CBD products don't get the same quality control measures or regulations as other medications so there's no telling what is and isn't in there that might be harmful to your dog.
Pet owners should be cautious, investigate the product, find breed-specific research and consult with online resources such as veterinarycannabis.org. People also should talk with their veterinarian, even if they have limited information, Klein said.
“At the moment," he said, "we can’t give a whole lot of advice besides: Consult the right people and research what you can.”
Contributor: Nirmal Mulaikal, Treasure Coast Newspapers | https://www.news-journalonline.com/story/news/local/2023/06/23/keeping-your-dog-calm-during-floridas-summer-thunderstorms/70349624007/ | 2023-06-23T17:03:41 | 0 | https://www.news-journalonline.com/story/news/local/2023/06/23/keeping-your-dog-calm-during-floridas-summer-thunderstorms/70349624007/ |
Florida House Speaker Paul Renner spotlights lesser-known bills at Flagler Tiger Bay
The supermajority Republican Florida House and Senate pushed through many wide-reaching laws between March and May: Restricting abortion under a "heartbeat" bill; banning gender-affirming care for minors; and carving out an exemption to the state's resign-to-run law and allowing Ron DeSantis to run for president without having to relinquish the Governor's Office.
But lawmakers did a whole lot more, too. Florida House Speaker Paul Renner said he felt a little like an auctioneer, running through highlights this week at a Flagler Tiger Bay event at the Hammock Dunes Club in Palm Coast. Here are five highlights that he said were overshadowed.
Improved retirement benefits for public safety employees
Lawmakers extended bonuses for new-recruit law enforcement officers and increased pay, Renner said. But a lesser-known bill that passed improved retirement benefits for "special class risk members," or police officers and sheriff's deputies, firefighters, correctional officers, probation officers, paramedics and emergency medical technicians.
The bill reduces the number of years of service for full Florida Retirement System pensions from 30 to 25. And for those who began their careers before July 1, 2011, it reduces the age to be fully vested from 60 to 55.
Renner said the change addresses a "retention problem," as other states had lower thresholds, such as 20 or 25 years of service.
School choice in Florida
The state expanded its school choice program to all 2.9 million students by converting existing voucher programs into education savings accounts of about $8,700 per child. He called it "the customization of education," allowing for all sorts of uses, including private education, but also in-home tutoring and prep courses for college-entrance exams.
“It goes in all different directions. It’s not just choice versus public schools,” Renner said, adding that the move is “bringing parity" to education spending.
The program has some funding limits and gives preference to low-income families and foster children.
Looking ahead at state infrastructure
The House established the Infrastructure Strategies Committee to look at water, transportation, agriculture, land use, conservation and resiliency.
With members term-limited to eight years and with an election every two years, it’s natural that much of their attention is on the here and now, he said.
“Part of the problem in politics is that people are chasing what’s sexy in the moment and forgetting about what’s going to happen 20 or 30 years from now,” he said. “So that committee is really set up to look not a year from now but 30 years from now to make sure we are getting ahead of things.”
Some of the long-term results, he said, include approving $4 billion for DeSantis’ Moving Florida Forward plan, moving up the timetable for 20 major infrastructure projects statewide including plans to reconfigure the Interstate 95-U.S. 1 interchange in Ormond Beach. Renner also touted a program to fund water and wastewater treatment facility improvements.
Corporate welfare and dissolving Enterprise Florida
Renner targeted “corporate welfare,” and pointed to Enterprise Florida, the private-public partnership that has taken a lead in recruiting new businesses using tax incentives. It was dissolved with the stroke of DeSantis’ pen on May 31.
Some of Enterprise Florida's functions, including Visit Florida and the Florida Sports Foundation, moved to the Department of Economic Opportunity, which was renamed the Department of Commerce.
“Florida continues to be the nation’s top destination for new businesses, workforce development and tourism, and streamlining our economic development programs in the Florida Department of Commerce will further support Florida’s thriving economy,” DeSantis said.
Enterprise Florida had been subsidizing Fortune 500 companies, helping them move to Florida or expand “at the expense of our local businesses,” he said, and it has “overpromised and underdelivered for years.”
He talked about core functions of government, such as assuring public safety and building and maintaining infrastructure.
“Giving Amazon billions or millions of dollars isn’t one them,” Renner said, noting Florida has attracted “the most adjusted gross income from individuals and businesses over the last year than the next 11 states combined.”
Florida tax cuts
While Renner and others have frequently touted one aspect of a $2.7 billion tax cut plan, the elimination of sales tax on items such as baby formula and strollers, he said the state also established 14-day sales tax holidays: two for back-to-school and another two for disaster preparedness. Additionally, it eliminated sales taxes on concert tickets, baseball bats, surfboards and other leisure-related purchases as part of a three-month “Freedom Summer.”
Bringing Home the Bacon:$155 million in state budget to accommodate growth, quality of life in Volusia, Flagler
Florida Endorsements:Nearly 100 Florida lawmakers back DeSantis for president, including most of local delegation | https://www.news-journalonline.com/story/news/local/flagler/2023/06/23/florida-house-speaker-paul-renner-spotlights-5-legislative-items-that-you-might-have-missed/70336918007/ | 2023-06-23T17:03:47 | 1 | https://www.news-journalonline.com/story/news/local/flagler/2023/06/23/florida-house-speaker-paul-renner-spotlights-5-legislative-items-that-you-might-have-missed/70336918007/ |
New $42 million Daytona rehab hospital could get up to $1.5 million in property tax relief
DAYTONA BEACH — With an influx of retirees and a growing population, more of Daytona Beach's 77,000 residents are going to need the type of specialized medical care that's vital after a debilitating stroke, spinal cord injury or amputation.
That's where Encompass Health Corporation, the largest owner and operator of rehabilitation hospitals in the United States, is going to step in.
Encompass, an affiliate of Martin Health, plans to construct a 50-bed inpatient rehabilitation hospital on an8.8-acre parcel at the southwest corner of Williamson Boulevard and Strickland Range Road. The facility will be called Encompass Health Rehabilitation Hospital of Daytona Beach.
The 50,000-square-foot hospital will provide physical therapy, occupational therapy and speech therapy after life-changing injuries and illnesses to help patients regain their independence.
The Alabama-based company estimates it will spend $42 million on the new center, which includes $4.5 million to purchase the land, $33 million to construct the new building and $5 million to buy equipment.
The facility will complement acute care in local hospitals, and it will offer an alternative to the only other inpatient rehabilitation facility in Volusia County: The 40-bed Brooks Rehabilitation Center at Halifax Health Medical Center.
"This is something that's really needed in Daytona Beach," said City Commissioner Stacy Cantu.
Encompass Health will create 98 fulltime positions at the Daytona hospital by the end of its third year of operation. The jobs will include highly specialized nurses, therapists and physicians, and the staff will have an average annual salary of $65,000.
Property tax breaks offered to new rehab facility
In exchange for its investment, Encompass will receive city property tax breaks of up to $300,000 per year during its first five years of operation if it creates the number of jobs outlined in an agreement city commissioners approved Wednesday night.
The five-year incentive agreement calls for the company to create at least 54 fulltime positions in its first year, and then scale up to a total of 79 fulltime employees by the second year, and 98 by the third year. To keep receiving the tax breaks, Encompass will have to maintain a minimum of 98 fulltime employees in its fourth and fifth years.
The average annual salary for the full-time employees must also remain at or above $65,000.
If all of those goals are met, Encompass will get 100% of its city property taxes reimbursed in the first and second years, 75% in the third and fourth years, and 50% in the fifth year.
Construction is expected to start in about four or five months, and it's required to be complete by Dec. 31, 2025. It's anticipated the first city property tax grant will be paid in 2027.
Encompass will report its job and salary figures to the city manager every year, complete with a signed affidavit from the company's human resources director or payroll director detailing the jobs and salaries at the Daytona site.
If the city suspects anything is amiss, it can hire an independent third-party auditor. If the city ever determines any figures were reported incorrectly, it could demand the waived property taxes be paid under a clawback provision in the contract.
The agreement would allow the city to reduce the next year's property tax break by $500 for each employee falsely reported to exist.
Daytona Beach resident Anne Ruby said she doesn't have an objection to the project, but she urged commissioners to ask Encompass for the planned median salary of its Daytona Beach employees, not the average. The high salaries of a few top employees can mask low wages among many workers on the bottom of the company pay scale when an average is used, Ruby said.
More Daytona Beach city government news:Daytona Beach hopes buying $2 million of mostly blighted land will help start a renaissance
Protogroup condo could get demo order:Unfinished Daytona Beach condo project could get second condemnation and demolition order
Jeff Brown, the city's director of Economic and Strategic Opportunities, told commissioners that even if the company's top two earners were removed from the calculation, the average would still be above $65,000 for the remaining employees. He said the majority of workers would also earn more than $65,000 per year.
City Commissioner Ken Strickland requested the meeting agenda item on the specialty hospital agreement be continued so commissioners could more closely examine salary numbers. Five of the seven city commissioners didn't want to delay the item, so the vote was taken.
Strickland cast the lone no vote.
You can reach Eileen at Eileen.Zaffiro@news-jrnl.com | https://www.news-journalonline.com/story/news/local/volusia/2023/06/23/daytona-beach-getting-place-for-serious-illness-and-injury-rehab/70347955007/ | 2023-06-23T17:03:53 | 1 | https://www.news-journalonline.com/story/news/local/volusia/2023/06/23/daytona-beach-getting-place-for-serious-illness-and-injury-rehab/70347955007/ |
Here's what Gastonia's new soul food and vegan restaurant has to offer
Shelby native puts soul food, vegan dishes on menu at Gastonia restaurant
For restaurant owner Dara Bess, EJ's Soul Food and Vegan Restaurant isn't just a business.
"This is my passion. This is my life," Bess said.
The Gastonia restaurant opened Saturday, June 17, in the old Brixx Pizza building at 501 Cox Road.
Bess, who works as a mental health counselor and is originally from Shelby, has a background in the restaurant industry.
"My first restaurant started in 2008: soul food, called Elite Cafe. It was located in Grover, North Carolina," she said.
Her family opened a second restaurant in 2019, The Bess Group, in Shelby.
EJ's Soul Food and Vegan Restaurant is named after Bess' son, Eli Jace. Bess teamed up with her friend, a plant-based food consultant named Dawn Hilton Williams, for the restaurant, which combines Bess' love of soul food with Williams' knowledge of vegan recipes.
"So Dawn and I are friends. There's not many places where friends can that have different tastes and enjoy it at the same time. Whether you're team vegan, team soul food, you can enjoy both at EJ's," she said.
EJ's offers a range of dishes: The soul food includes fried chicken, salmon patties, baked chicken, macaroni and cheese, fried fish sandwiches, pork chops, wings, fried pickles, and more, while there are a range of vegan sides that include chickpea salad, a vegan burger, collards, cabbage, green beans and candied yams. Vegan dishes are clearly marked on the menu, and they are cooked separately from the soul food to prevent cross-contamination, Williams said.
"She has separate fryers, separate cooking equipment, separate warming tables, separate washing sinks for vegan. These are things that vegans are very serious about. Often we go to restaurants and we don't have those experiences," she said. "We get cross contaminated food. Dara is dedicated to not doing that."
The vegan options are dense in nutrients, Williams said.
"Dara wanted to make sure that the vegan options were actually nutrient forward, healthy but flavorful," she said. "The barbecue jackfruit is twice roasted with her house made barbecue sauce in a purple cabbage slaw, which is higher in antioxidants and anthocyanins because it's the purple cabbage. So she just had a lot of carrots, you know, a lot of healthy things in mind, but it still tastes very flavorful and has a soul imprint because of that flavor profile."
Opening her restaurant did not come without challenges. Bess is a single mother, working as a mental health counselor while raising her son, who is 5, and two foster children. The timing of obtaining permits, working with contractors, and an added twist when someone stole the restaurant's patio furniture have also been obstacles.
"And it's amazing that this single mom could pull this off with two wonderful foster kids and her own 5-year-old, Eli. And she also, you know, is still working. And she's making this work and she's brought in a good team who believe in her, and we just want her success," Williams said.
Bess said that she finds deep meaning in being able to open a restaurant, despite all that's been happening.
"It's deep. It actually makes me emotional, because it has been a lot," she said. "Words cannot describe the challenges and the obstacles. One is, let's be honest: female, black female, single mom."
The restaurant, she said, is a kind of ministry for her.
"Because if anybody's ever worked in ministry, you know how it is. It's not for the money. It's not for the accolades. It is for purpose, and passion. I'm doing this because this is my purpose and this is my passion," she said. "It's my fulfillment. It's who I am. And that's why I said, when you walk into EJ's, I want you to see that, see the bright, the warm. It feels like home.
"We want you to feel the love," she added. "We want this to be an experience and an encounter, not just a meal." | https://www.gastongazette.com/story/news/local/2023/06/23/heres-what-gastonias-new-vegan-restaurant-has-to-offer/70312582007/ | 2023-06-23T17:04:44 | 0 | https://www.gastongazette.com/story/news/local/2023/06/23/heres-what-gastonias-new-vegan-restaurant-has-to-offer/70312582007/ |
Cornerstone Center for the Arts receives 2024 fellowship for creative teaching guidelines
MUNCIE, Ind. – Cornerstone Center for the Arts has been selected to be an Arts Partner for the Indiana Educator Fellowship for Creative Teachers. Cornerstone is one of 20 education fellowships awarded across the state for a new program of the Indiana Arts Commission and the Indiana Department of Education.
“Cornerstone is thrilled to be included in this program,” said Allison Bell, president and CEO of Cornerstone. “It is an honor for us to be part of this prestigious fellowship”
Cornerstone, 520 W. Main St., will provide expertise in the art form and connections to qualified teaching artists.
Brittany Bleicher, who teaches social studies and English at Northside Middle School, has been selected as an Indiana Fellow for Creative Teaching this fall. The five-plus week program is an arts integration program, which means that learning goals combine art with another subjects during a single session.
The grant is for $7,500 with up to 20 percent going to Cornerstone for administrative costs and the rest going to artist fees, artist expenses for in-school activities and other costs incurred by the school.
The program will begin in September and will focus on students in the sixth and seventh grades.
Cornerstone Center for the Arts offers opportunities for creative expression for all through community and rental spaces in a historic setting. For additional information go to www.cornerstonearts.org or call 765-281-9503. | https://www.thestarpress.com/story/news/local/2023/06/23/cornerstone-receives-2024-fellowship-for-creative-teaching-guidelines/70348306007/ | 2023-06-23T17:05:19 | 0 | https://www.thestarpress.com/story/news/local/2023/06/23/cornerstone-receives-2024-fellowship-for-creative-teaching-guidelines/70348306007/ |
ORLANDO, Fla. — An Osceola County woman who sprang for a $20 lottery ticket is now millions of dollars richer.
>>> STREAM CHANNEL 9 EYEWITNESS NEWS LIVE <<<
Mensny Oreste, of Kissimmee, recently claimed her $5 million prize after playing Florida Lottery’s Gold Rush Limited.
The scratch-off game offers various prize amounts between $20 and $5 million.
READ: Orlando woman strikes it rich twice; wins two $1M scratch-off tickets 2 months apart
As of Friday, Florida Lottery’s website showed that nine of the 32 top prizes of $5 million were still in play.
The game debuted in September 2021.
READ: Seminole County resident wins big in Mega Millions lottery game
Oreste bought her lucky ticket from a Circle K convenience store located at 2500 South French Avenue in Sanford.
The store will receive a $10,000 bonus commission for selling the winning scratch-off.
READ: TS Bret, Cindy continue westward moves, both storms set to weaken over weekend
Lottery officials said Oreste, 41, chose to collect her winnings in a lump sum and took home $3,960,000.
If you decide to take a crack at Gold Rush Limited, your odds of winning a prize are 1 in 2.65, according to Florida Lottery.
Click here to download the free WFTV news and weather apps, click here to download the WFTV Now app for your smart TV and click here to stream Channel 9 Eyewitness News live.
©2023 Cox Media Group | https://www.wftv.com/news/local/20-scratch-off-brings-5-million-windfall-kissimmee-woman-see-where-she-bought-her-ticket/5J2LJPE77RCPVBHUARQUZK45PE/ | 2023-06-23T17:11:20 | 0 | https://www.wftv.com/news/local/20-scratch-off-brings-5-million-windfall-kissimmee-woman-see-where-she-bought-her-ticket/5J2LJPE77RCPVBHUARQUZK45PE/ |
ORLANDO, Fla. — Tourism in the Orlando area is on the up and up according to a local group.
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The Orange County Tourist Development Tax Citizen Advisory Task Force held its fifth meeting of the year on Friday.
Officials said numbers for some businesses are back above pre-pandemic levels and are expected to grow.
With 159 events scheduled this year and more than 1.5 million attendees expected, the projected economic impact is around $2.8 billion.
“I believe the future is bright for Orange County and Central Florida because we have amenities here that you won’t find anywhere else,” said Orange County Mayor Jerry Demings.
Watch: Dr. Phillips Center hopes to receive $145 million from Orange County tourist development tax
However, some organizations like the NAACP have either canceled or moved their events out-of-state, blaming controversial laws recently signed by Gov. Ron DeSantis.
“There’s no question the politics of Florida includes a narrative for people thinking about visiting. Today we’ve been pretty successful turning things around on a local level,” Demings said.
Read: ‘Learn and be successful’: Over 100 local tourism workers completed ESOL classes.
The Orlando area is still the most visited location in the country ahead of Los Angeles and Las Vegas.
And tourist tax revenues will surely grow with the anticipated return of the NFL highly popular Pro Bowl in 2024.
See more in the video above.
Click here to download the free WFTV news and weather apps, click here to download the WFTV Now app for your smart TV and click here to stream Channel 9 Eyewitness News live.
©2023 Cox Media Group | https://www.wftv.com/news/local/future-is-bright-orange-county-sees-tourism-numbers-grow/BPIQDRP4BBBN5MSIB6UXWM4SYI/ | 2023-06-23T17:11:21 | 0 | https://www.wftv.com/news/local/future-is-bright-orange-county-sees-tourism-numbers-grow/BPIQDRP4BBBN5MSIB6UXWM4SYI/ |
ORLANDO, Fla. — An Orlando smoke shop owner is facing charges for allegedly selling cannabis to minors near a local school.
>>> STREAM CHANNEL 9 EYEWITNESS NEWS LIVE <<<
Investigators said they served a search warrant at the One Love Smoke Shop on Curry Ford Road after receiving a complaint.
Watch: Orange County commissioner proposes crackdown on illegal short-term rental properties
Officers said they confiscated five pounds of cannabis, 15 pounds of cannabis edibles, synthetic cannabis and a stolen gun.
Police said the store’s owner is charged with the sale of cannabis within 1,000 feet of a school.
Watch: SeaWorld announces Summer Spectacular concert lineup
Click here to download the free WFTV news and weather apps, click here to download the WFTV Now app for your smart TV and click here to stream Channel 9 Eyewitness News live.
©2023 Cox Media Group | https://www.wftv.com/news/local/orlando-smoke-shop-owner-arrested-after-selling-cannabis-minors-near-school-police-say/OMITW5B33RFCNEN3VNWKIIUWVY/ | 2023-06-23T17:11:35 | 0 | https://www.wftv.com/news/local/orlando-smoke-shop-owner-arrested-after-selling-cannabis-minors-near-school-police-say/OMITW5B33RFCNEN3VNWKIIUWVY/ |
BOVEY — A permanent fix to control rising water levels in an old Iron Range mine pit is on the way.
As part of this year’s bonding bill, the Minnesota Legislature approved $8.875 million for the construction of an overflow outlet on the Canisteo Mine Pit, a series of abandoned open-pit iron ore mines next to Bovey.
Since 1980, the pit’s water levels have been increasing 5-7 feet per year, except for a few years in the 2010s when two now-bankrupt mining companies pumped water out of the pits and this spring’s pumping by the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources.
The DNR has been trying to keep water from exceeding 1,318 feet above sea level, the point at which drainage tile installed to protect Bovey in 2011 is overwhelmed. If water levels exceed 1,324 feet, water will flow over the lowest section of the pit’s rim.
"Without pumping, the DNR estimates water would rise at a slow rate, and the pit would naturally overtop by late 2023 or in 2024," the DNR said on its website. "If the pit water level were to reach the overtopping elevation, water runout would occur slowly with surface water flowing at the lowest elevations along the pit rim."
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But with nearly $9 million in funding on hand, the DNR is putting the project out for bid. Construction could begin as soon as this fall, Mike Liljegren, the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources division of land and minerals assistant director, said in a video update on the project.
“We will be working now on a timeframe to start the construction of the outlet, which we have completely designed and ready to go,” Liljegren said.
The DNR plans to install the outlet — a culvert on the west end of the pit — at 1,305 feet to keep water levels from going any higher than that. It’ll use gravity to carry water from the Canisteo Pit under County Highway 61 into a wetland complex, where it will flow naturally through the West Hill and Lind pits and finally the Prairie River, the News Tribune previously reported.
“So it would ultimately be a drop-control structure going through sand filtration, ultimately flowing out through the Prairie River,” Liljegren said.
The sand filter was added to the design after zebra mussels were discovered in the pit last fall. That discovery made pumping water out of the pit last winter more difficult.
The invasive species can cause expensive damage to water intake pipes and can reduce or block water flow into intake pipes, and moving the infested water would also spread the zebra mussels to other lakes.
But zebra mussel larvae, called veligers, drop out of the water column below a certain temperature, allowing the DNR to pump water in the winter.
The DNR said it stopped May 14 after water temperatures reached 48 degrees for four consecutive days.
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“Turning off the pumps before zebra mussels reproduce helps ensure that veligers are not carried to downstream waters,” the DNR said.
Water levels fell by more than 2.5 feet from pumping. The DNR expects the water will rise another 3 feet by winter. Pumping will likely resume ahead of construction on the outlet. | https://www.duluthnewstribune.com/news/local/canisteo-mine-pit-will-finally-get-fix-to-rising-water | 2023-06-23T17:14:15 | 0 | https://www.duluthnewstribune.com/news/local/canisteo-mine-pit-will-finally-get-fix-to-rising-water |
DULUTH — About a month before the Minnesota Legislature convened in January, Duluth Public Schools leaders drafted a legislative platform that called for relatively large funding increases and a handful of policy changes.
At the top of the list were 5% increases to the per-student money the state pays public school districts, as well as a large hike to special education funding to cover the “cross subsidy" — the general education money a district uses to cover the gap between the money it spends on special education and the state aid it receives for that purpose.
Of the requests the district made that have a readily assignable dollar figure, the district received less than half of what it asked for.
A 5% increase to the general funding formula would have yielded a further $3.48 million for the district in the coming school year; the 4% it received instead will produce about $2.78 million. A 100% reduction to the cross subsidy would have meant about $8.59 million next year; the 44% reduction lawmakers approved is set to yield about $3.78 million.
The $2 million the district asked for to help correct a $5 million special education funding issue in 2016 wasn’t approved.
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The sales tax exemption for construction costs at a new headquarters adjacent to the now-demolished Central High School was approved, which will mean a tax rebate of about $510,000.
A request for $500 per student for school safety, which would have meant an estimated $3.99 million for the district, didn’t make the legislative cut, but lawmakers allowed districts to spend the safety money they already receive for cybersecurity measures.
“I think they just decided that they were going to, instead of putting everything on the formula, and everything in the special ed cross subsidy, is chop it up a little bit and provide money in categoricals (cash for a specific program or student need, rather than money that can be spent more broadly),” Kirk Schneidawind, executive director of the Minnesota Schools Boards Association, told the News Tribune, referring to state legislators.
“There hasn’t been much progress in the last couple years in terms of funding, and I think the teacher shortage, paraprofessional training, school support staff, some of those areas ... they’ve been trying to get some money into that, and then they just haven’t got them," he said. "So this was the year that they did that.”
New money for those categoricals at the district includes a further $17,000 for student access to menstrual products; $19,000 more to help education for English language learners; another $104,000 for American Indian education; $104,000 more for student support personnel; and an additional $140,000 for library aid, according to budget documents presented to school board members last month.
But many of the requests school district leaders made were for unspecified funding increases or for fewer strings attached to the money they already receive.
The legislative platform that school board members approved in December called for increased funding for the “multi-tiered systems of support," or MTSS, the district is working to implement, but did not include an explicit funding target. Legislators approved $13.5 million statewide each year for the next three, and district administrators said it’s not yet clear how much of that will make its way north.
“We’re still waiting for the district breakdowns on a lot of things, so it's hard to know exactly how much we’re getting for some of those things,” Superintendent John Magas said. “MTSS is basically the framework of the strategic plan, so any efforts, any resources we can put toward MTSS are hugely beneficial.”
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A request for an increase to long-term facilities and maintenance funding was similarly unspecific; the Legislature didn’t allocate any additional funding, but it did allow districts to spend the money they already receive for that purpose on gender-neutral bathrooms. A handful of districts can also now spend that money on air-handling systems.
District leaders also asked for the authority to renew existing or future operating levies via a school board vote, rather than a districtwide referendum. The Legislature gave school districts the power to do that once.
“We’re also curious and waiting to find out more from the state about what it looks like for us to be able to seek reimbursement for use of unemployment insurance and such,” Magas said, referring to a provision lawmakers approved that makes hourly workers at a district eligible for unemployment benefits during the summer. “There’s one-time funding for that, but I think that money is probably going to dry up pretty quickly.”
Payment for those could eat up some of the new money produced by the 4% increase to per-student revenue.
“We are happy that the state has done what it’s done, and, at the same time, we’re coming off of our (COVID-19 aid) spending,” Magas said. “We’re in a good place economically now, but we are going to be facing some hard times in a few years if we don’t have a change in our funding, either through the state or through a local tax levy or something like that.” | https://www.duluthnewstribune.com/news/local/what-duluth-public-schools-get-from-state-lawmakers | 2023-06-23T17:14:25 | 1 | https://www.duluthnewstribune.com/news/local/what-duluth-public-schools-get-from-state-lawmakers |
BIG SPRING, Texas — The intersection of Benton and NE 2nd Street in Big Spring will be shut down for one week starting on June 26.
The closure will allow utility crews to repair a small gas leak in the area. People are encouraged to look for alternate routes at this time and delays are likely.
If people have any questions about the repair work, call Public Works Director Shane Bowles at 432-264-2501. | https://www.newswest9.com/article/news/local/intersection-of-benton-and-ne-2nd-street-in-big-spring-to-close-down-for-one-week-starting-june-26/513-2953f8d3-9000-4780-ad0d-ce3a8cd4894c | 2023-06-23T17:18:36 | 0 | https://www.newswest9.com/article/news/local/intersection-of-benton-and-ne-2nd-street-in-big-spring-to-close-down-for-one-week-starting-june-26/513-2953f8d3-9000-4780-ad0d-ce3a8cd4894c |
NORTH WILDWOOD — A young man and a teenager were each charged with committing theft and vehicle burglary in the city after turning themselves in this week, police said.
Joshua A. Puopolo, 18, of Atco, Camden County, and a 16-year-old girl from Hammonton surrendered Wednesday and Thursday, police said Friday in a news release.
The alleged crime happened between 3 and 6 a.m. June 4 in the city's Anglesea section. The suspects were seen riding in a white Pontiac G6 registered in New Jersey, police said last week.
Both Puopolo and the girl were photographed inside what appeared to be a Wawa. The image was shared with the public last Thursday in an attempt to identify them.
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Puopolo was charged with employing a juvenile in the commission of a crime, fraudulent use of a credit card, conspiracy and theft of a credit card.
The girl was charged with fraudulent use of a credit card, conspiracy and receiving stolen property.
Puopolo was brought to the Cape May County jail, and the girl was released to her father, police said Friday. | https://pressofatlanticcity.com/news/local/crime-and-courts/northwildwood-newjersey-jerseyshore-crime-arrests/article_98fdc29e-11ca-11ee-821b-63a0f52d9cfc.html | 2023-06-23T17:18:36 | 1 | https://pressofatlanticcity.com/news/local/crime-and-courts/northwildwood-newjersey-jerseyshore-crime-arrests/article_98fdc29e-11ca-11ee-821b-63a0f52d9cfc.html |
ODESSA, Texas — Odessa Moose Lodge 1701 has partnered up with Vitalant to host a blood drive event on June 24.
The event will take place from 12:00 p.m. to 2:30 p.m. on 2711 North Dixie. People can schedule an appointment by either contacting Curtis Shipman at 432-332-5611 or call 877-25VITAL.
For more information about the blood drive, people can click here. | https://www.newswest9.com/article/news/local/odessa-moose-lodge-1701-to-host-blood-drive-on-june-24/513-27455abb-3812-41a9-b355-27f7e5b062f2 | 2023-06-23T17:18:42 | 1 | https://www.newswest9.com/article/news/local/odessa-moose-lodge-1701-to-host-blood-drive-on-june-24/513-27455abb-3812-41a9-b355-27f7e5b062f2 |
ABSECON — The Rev. Perry Cherubini, president of Holy Spirit High School, will be stepping down at the end of the month, school officials said Friday.
Cherubini has been president of the Catholic school on New Road since 2008, according to a story by the Catholic Star Herald on his retirement .
In announcing Cherubini's departure, school officials thanked him for his service, particularly for "his loyalty and his wisdom."
"He has been a mentor and friend to our faculty, staff and students, and we pray for his continued blessings during this next phase of his life," Holy Spirit wrote on its Facebook page Friday.
School officials did not elaborate on the process of selecting the institution's next president.
Cherubini first arrived at Holy Spirit as a religion teacher in the late 1990s, leaving in 2001 to become vice principal of Gloucester Catholic High School in Gloucester City, Camden County, the Star Herald reported.
He became the pastor at St. Elizabeth Ann Seaton Catholic Church on Mill Road in the city in 2006 before returning to Holy Spirit, the Star Herald said.
He is currently the pastor of Saint Joseph Catholic Church in Sea Isle City.
PHOTOS Holy Spirit High School 100th anniversary Mass
The school choir participates in the mass celebrating Holy Spirit High School’s centennial, in Absecon, Sunday, Sept. 25, 2022. (VERNON OGRODNEK, FOR THE PRESS)
VERNON OGRODNEK FOR THE PRESS
Sean Finan, a senior, helped celebrate the mass recognizing Holy Spirit High School’s centennial, in Absecon, Sunday, Sept. 25, 2022. (VERNON OGRODNEK, FOR THE PRESS)
VERNON OGRODNEK FOR THE PRESS
Jennifer and Daniel Arcentales,of Absecon, wore the school colors, during the mass celebrating Holy Spirit High School’s centennial, in Absecon, Sunday, Sept. 25, 2022. (VERNON OGRODNEK, FOR THE PRESS)
VERNON OGRODNEK FOR THE PRESS
Sean Finan, a senior, helped celebrate the mass recognizing Holy Spirit High School’s centennial, in Absecon, Sunday, Sept. 25, 2022. (VERNON OGRODNEK, FOR THE PRESS)
VERNON OGRODNEK FOR THE PRESS
Reverend Perry Cherubini, President of the Holy Spirit High School, leads the mass celebrating the school’s centennial, in Absecon, Sunday, Sept. 25, 2022. (VERNON OGRODNEK, FOR THE PRESS)
VERNON OGRODNEK FOR THE PRESS
Reverend Perry Cherubini, center, President of the Holy Spirit High School, leads the mass celebrating the school’s centennial, in Absecon, Sunday, Sept. 25, 2022. (VERNON OGRODNEK, FOR THE PRESS)
VERNON OGRODNEK FOR THE PRESS
Rev. Ted Heintzelman was in the first freshman class at the high school’s present location and helped celebrate the mass for Holy Spirit High School’s centennial, in Absecon, Sunday, Sept. 25, 2022. (VERNON OGRODNEK, FOR THE PRESS)
VERNON OGRODNEK FOR THE PRESS
Reverend Perry Cherubini, center, President of the Holy Spirit High School, leads the mass celebrating the school’s centennial, in Absecon, Sunday, Sept. 25, 2022. (VERNON OGRODNEK, FOR THE PRESS)
VERNON OGRODNEK FOR THE PRESS
Attendees pray during the mass celebrating Holy Spirit High School’s centennial, in Absecon, Sunday, Sept. 25, 2022. (VERNON OGRODNEK, FOR THE PRESS)
VERNON OGRODNEK FOR THE PRESS
Students assisted in the mass celebrating Holy Spirit High School’s centennial, in Absecon, Sunday, Sept. 25, 2022. (VERNON OGRODNEK, FOR THE PRESS)
VERNON OGRODNEK FOR THE PRESS
Holy Spirit High School, in Absecon, celebrated a mass for the 100th anniversary of the school, Sunday, Sept. 25, 2022. (VERNON OGRODNEK, FOR THE PRESS)
VERNON OGRODNEK FOR THE PRESS
Reverend Perry Cherubini, President of the Holy Spirit High School, leads the mass celebrating the school’s centennial, in Absecon, Sunday, Sept. 25, 2022. (VERNON OGRODNEK, FOR THE PRESS)
VERNON OGRODNEK FOR THE PRESS
The Rev. Perry Cherubini, center, leads the Mass celebrating Holy Spirit High School’s centennial on Sunday in Absecon. “I’ve seen us go through a lot of challenges,” Cherubini said. “But we’re still here, and we’re still strong.”
VERNON OGRODNEK PHOTOS, FOR THE PRESS
Kathy Buckman Revelle, a member of the class of 1968 who now lives in Galloway Township, shows her class ring during the centennial celebration. “I have so many good memories,” she said.
VERNON OGRODNEK, FOR THE PRESS
Former students and family of students were among the many that attended the mass celebrating Holy Spirit High School’s centennial, in Absecon, Sunday, Sept. 25, 2022. (VERNON OGRODNEK, FOR THE PRESS)
VERNON OGRODNEK FOR THE PRESS
Reverend Perry Cherubini, President of the Holy Spirit High School, leads the mass celebrating the school’s centennial, in Absecon, Sunday, Sept. 25, 2022. (VERNON OGRODNEK, FOR THE PRESS)
VERNON OGRODNEK FOR THE PRESS
Former students and family of students were among the many that attended the mass celebrating Holy Spirit High School’s centennial, in Absecon, Sunday, Sept. 25, 2022. (VERNON OGRODNEK, FOR THE PRESS)
VERNON OGRODNEK FOR THE PRESS
The Holy Spirit High School choir participates in the Mass celebrating the Absecon school's centennial on Sunday.
VERNON OGRODNEK Photos, FOR THE PRESS
Reverend Perry Cherubini, center, President of the Holy Spirit High School, leads the mass celebrating the school’s centennial, in Absecon, Sunday, Sept. 25, 2022. (VERNON OGRODNEK, FOR THE PRESS)
VERNON OGRODNEK FOR THE PRESS
Scenes from the mass celebrating Holy Spirit High School’s centennial, in Absecon, Sunday, Sept. 25, 2022. (VERNON OGRODNEK, FOR THE PRESS)
VERNON OGRODNEK FOR THE PRESS
Scenes from the mass celebrating Holy Spirit High School’s centennial, in Absecon, Sunday, Sept. 25, 2022. (VERNON OGRODNEK, FOR THE PRESS)
VERNON OGRODNEK FOR THE PRESS
Scenes from the mass celebrating Holy Spirit High School’s centennial, in Absecon, Sunday, Sept. 25, 2022. (VERNON OGRODNEK, FOR THE PRESS)
VERNON OGRODNEK FOR THE PRESS
Scenes from the mass celebrating Holy Spirit High School’s centennial, in Absecon, Sunday, Sept. 25, 2022. (VERNON OGRODNEK, FOR THE PRESS)
VERNON OGRODNEK FOR THE PRESS
Scenes from the mass celebrating Holy Spirit High School’s centennial, in Absecon, Sunday, Sept. 25, 2022. (VERNON OGRODNEK, FOR THE PRESS)
VERNON OGRODNEK FOR THE PRESS
Scenes from the mass celebrating Holy Spirit High School’s centennial, in Absecon, Sunday, Sept. 25, 2022. (VERNON OGRODNEK, FOR THE PRESS)
VERNON OGRODNEK FOR THE PRESS
Scenes from the mass celebrating Holy Spirit High School’s centennial, in Absecon, Sunday, Sept. 25, 2022. (VERNON OGRODNEK, FOR THE PRESS)
VERNON OGRODNEK FOR THE PRESS
Scenes from the mass celebrating Holy Spirit High School’s centennial, in Absecon, Sunday, Sept. 25, 2022. (VERNON OGRODNEK, FOR THE PRESS)
VERNON OGRODNEK FOR THE PRESS
Scenes from the mass celebrating Holy Spirit High School’s centennial, in Absecon, Sunday, Sept. 25, 2022. (VERNON OGRODNEK, FOR THE PRESS)
VERNON OGRODNEK FOR THE PRESS
Scenes from the mass celebrating Holy Spirit High School’s centennial, in Absecon, Sunday, Sept. 25, 2022. (VERNON OGRODNEK, FOR THE PRESS)
VERNON OGRODNEK FOR THE PRESS
Scenes from the mass celebrating Holy Spirit High School’s centennial, in Absecon, Sunday, Sept. 25, 2022. (VERNON OGRODNEK, FOR THE PRESS)
VERNON OGRODNEK FOR THE PRESS
Scenes from the mass celebrating Holy Spirit High School’s centennial, in Absecon, Sunday, Sept. 25, 2022. (VERNON OGRODNEK, FOR THE PRESS)
VERNON OGRODNEK FOR THE PRESS
Scenes from the mass celebrating Holy Spirit High School’s centennial, in Absecon, Sunday, Sept. 25, 2022. (VERNON OGRODNEK, FOR THE PRESS)
VERNON OGRODNEK FOR THE PRESS
Scenes from the mass celebrating Holy Spirit High School’s centennial, in Absecon, Sunday, Sept. 25, 2022. (VERNON OGRODNEK, FOR THE PRESS)
VERNON OGRODNEK FOR THE PRESS
Generations of alumni and current and former teachers came for the celebration.
VERNON OGRODNEK, FOR THE PRESS
Scenes from the mass celebrating Holy Spirit High School’s centennial, in Absecon, Sunday, Sept. 25, 2022. (VERNON OGRODNEK, FOR THE PRESS)
VERNON OGRODNEK FOR THE PRESS
Scenes from the mass celebrating Holy Spirit High School’s centennial, in Absecon, Sunday, Sept. 25, 2022. (VERNON OGRODNEK, FOR THE PRESS)
VERNON OGRODNEK FOR THE PRESS
Scenes from the mass celebrating Holy Spirit High School’s centennial, in Absecon, Sunday, Sept. 25, 2022. (VERNON OGRODNEK, FOR THE PRESS)
VERNON OGRODNEK FOR THE PRESS
Scenes from the mass celebrating Holy Spirit High School’s centennial, in Absecon, Sunday, Sept. 25, 2022. (VERNON OGRODNEK, FOR THE PRESS)
VERNON OGRODNEK FOR THE PRESS
Scenes from the mass celebrating Holy Spirit High School’s centennial, in Absecon, Sunday, Sept. 25, 2022. (VERNON OGRODNEK, FOR THE PRESS)
VERNON OGRODNEK FOR THE PRESS
Scenes from the mass celebrating Holy Spirit High School’s centennial, in Absecon, Sunday, Sept. 25, 2022. (VERNON OGRODNEK, FOR THE PRESS)
VERNON OGRODNEK FOR THE PRESS
Scenes from the mass celebrating Holy Spirit High School’s centennial, in Absecon, Sunday, Sept. 25, 2022. (VERNON OGRODNEK, FOR THE PRESS)
VERNON OGRODNEK FOR THE PRESS
Scenes from the mass celebrating Holy Spirit High School’s centennial, in Absecon, Sunday, Sept. 25, 2022. (VERNON OGRODNEK, FOR THE PRESS)
VERNON OGRODNEK FOR THE PRESS
Scenes from the mass celebrating Holy Spirit High School’s centennial, in Absecon, Sunday, Sept. 25, 2022. (VERNON OGRODNEK, FOR THE PRESS)
VERNON OGRODNEK FOR THE PRESS
Scenes from the mass celebrating Holy Spirit High School’s centennial, in Absecon, Sunday, Sept. 25, 2022. (VERNON OGRODNEK, FOR THE PRESS)
VERNON OGRODNEK FOR THE PRESS
Scenes from the mass celebrating Holy Spirit High School’s centennial, in Absecon, Sunday, Sept. 25, 2022. (VERNON OGRODNEK, FOR THE PRESS)
VERNON OGRODNEK FOR THE PRESS
Scenes from the mass celebrating Holy Spirit High School’s centennial, in Absecon, Sunday, Sept. 25, 2022. (VERNON OGRODNEK, FOR THE PRESS)
VERNON OGRODNEK FOR THE PRESS
Scenes from the mass celebrating Holy Spirit High School’s centennial, in Absecon, Sunday, Sept. 25, 2022. (VERNON OGRODNEK, FOR THE PRESS)
VERNON OGRODNEK FOR THE PRESS
Scenes from the mass celebrating Holy Spirit High School’s centennial, in Absecon, Sunday, Sept. 25, 2022. (VERNON OGRODNEK, FOR THE PRESS)
VERNON OGRODNEK FOR THE PRESS
Scenes from the mass celebrating Holy Spirit High School’s centennial, in Absecon, Sunday, Sept. 25, 2022. (VERNON OGRODNEK, FOR THE PRESS)
VERNON OGRODNEK FOR THE PRESS
Scenes from the mass celebrating Holy Spirit High School’s centennial, in Absecon, Sunday, Sept. 25, 2022. (VERNON OGRODNEK, FOR THE PRESS)
VERNON OGRODNEK FOR THE PRESS
Scenes from the mass celebrating Holy Spirit High School’s centennial, in Absecon, Sunday, Sept. 25, 2022. (VERNON OGRODNEK, FOR THE PRESS)
VERNON OGRODNEK FOR THE PRESS
Scenes from the mass celebrating Holy Spirit High School’s centennial, in Absecon, Sunday, Sept. 25, 2022. (VERNON OGRODNEK, FOR THE PRESS)
VERNON OGRODNEK FOR THE PRESS
Scenes from the mass celebrating Holy Spirit High School’s centennial, in Absecon, Sunday, Sept. 25, 2022. (VERNON OGRODNEK, FOR THE PRESS)
VERNON OGRODNEK FOR THE PRESS
Contact Eric Conklin:
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econklin@pressofac.com
Twitter @ACPressConklin
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OCEAN CITY — With time running out before the current superintendent leaves the district, the Ocean City Board of Education on Thursday voted to hire Scott McCartney as interim superintendent, at a rate of $700 a day.
The term runs from July 1 until Dec. 31, but board members suggest he will likely be replaced with a new superintendent to replace Matt Friedman, who is leaving the district after less than a year on the job.
McCartney previously worked in Egg Harbor Township and was named the Southern Regional Superintendent of the Year for 2015 by the New Jersey Association of School Administrators. For the 2022-23 school year, he has been the interim principal at Lindenwold High School in Camden County.
Two board members voted against his appointment, in a meeting that highlighted divisions on the board and in the community.
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Board President Scott Halliday praised McCartney’s qualifications, saying he was willing to step in to lead the district while the search continued for a permanent superintendent.
“So what’s the controversy?” he said at the Thursday meeting.
While mild by the standards of some other districts in the area, there were exchanges between board members while the appointment was being discussed, which were contentious enough to draw a rebuke from Lauren Knopp, an Ocean City High School senior and one of the student representatives to the Board of Education.
“I hate to see this board so divided,” Knopp said as the board discussed hiring McCartney. It was her last meeting as a student rep for the graduating senior, who had been lauded for her efforts at the same meeting.
OCEAN CITY — As the Board of Education again searches for a new superintendent, one thing is…
Earlier in the meeting, board member Robin Shaffer criticized the proposed hiring, saying the district should instead promote from within, at one point mentioning Lauren Gunther, the district’s director of student services, who has sought the superintendent’s job.
Shaffer also discussed details of the contract with McCartney, including provisions for a $1,500 computer for McCartney to use at home and additional funds for professional development. Board attorney Michael Stanton said the discussions should take place in closed session.
All decisions, and most of the discussions, of public bodies in New Jersey must by law take place in public, under the Open Public Meetings Act. There are exceptions, including for discussions of contract negotiations and personnel matters, but in those cases, the vote must take place in public, and minutes of the closed-door talks are supposed to be made public eventually.
“The Open Public Meetings Act exists for a reason. And it’s to not only to let the public access as much information as possible, it’s also meant to protect matters relating to personnel and students,” Knopp said at the meeting. “And by discussing a personnel matter in front like this, I feel like it’s a disrespect to the teachers and administrators that work in this district, because I don’t want them to … feel like their contracts or jobs can be discussed in public.”
Shaffer took issue with a retired educator receiving pay while also receiving a pension, describing it as double dipping.
“Retired superintendents ride a circuit of New Jersey school districts, receiving a full pension,” Shaffer said.
Promoting from within would mean someone would have two jobs while preparing for the next school year, Halliday said.
“So which job do you not want them to do?” asked board member Fran Newman, one of the Upper Township representatives on the board.
OCEAN CITY — However quickly the city’s school district hires a new superintendent, there wi…
Board member Joe Clark, a former board president, said the open meeting was not the proper forum for the discussion.
“This was all discussed in closed session. So why are we hashing it out here? If you were there, you could have asked all this,” Clark said. The board held a closed-door meeting June 17 to reach a consensus on the interim superintendent. “We discussed it and we discussed it and discussed it. There were very valid reasons. This is not the forum. You should have been there.”
Shaffer indicated he had a scheduling conflict and said Clark should have been at another meeting, a forum at which members of the public spoke about what they want to see in a new superintendent.
“You should have been there, OK?” Shaffer said.
Shaffer and member Catherine Panico voted against McCartney’s appointment. They had run as a ticket in November, along with Liz Nicoletti, who voted in favor of the hiring. It was the first time the three had not voted as a block.
The three ran with the endorsement of the national group Moms for Liberty, a conservative organization with a growing profile on issues related to schools, Black history, gender identity and sex education. The three Ocean City candidates ran with a focus on new state education standards that went into effect this year that have proven controversial in Ocean City and statewide.
Sparring over the new super was only part of the lengthy meeting, which also included recognitions for staff members and teachers of the year for each of the three schools in the district, recognitions for the students of the month in each school and a presentation on the successful spring sports season.
The board also thanked Knopp and fellow student representatives Isabella Pero and Christian Ganter for their service.
OCEAN CITY — The Board of Education this week launched its search for a new superintendent t…
Board member Kevin Barnes wished outgoing Superintendent Friedman well and thanked him for his efforts on behalf of the district.
In a statement on McCartney’s hiring, Halliday described him as an experienced and well-regarded superintendent who will lead the district at a critical time. He said the hope is to have a permanent superintendent in place by the start of the next school year.
“He understands the distinctive culture and needs of this region, the challenges and, most importantly, the opportunities of our shore community," Halliday said. "We believe he is the right person to engage and work with the Board of Education, his colleagues in the district, and our community in the coming months.” | https://pressofatlanticcity.com/news/local/education/ocean-city-hire-interim-superintendent/article_29946c06-11e2-11ee-8893-a3150d2a790e.html | 2023-06-23T17:18:48 | 1 | https://pressofatlanticcity.com/news/local/education/ocean-city-hire-interim-superintendent/article_29946c06-11e2-11ee-8893-a3150d2a790e.html |
WISE COUNTY, Va. (WJHL) – A crash in Wise County, Virginia near the Kentucky state line Friday left one person dead, according to the Virginia State Police (VSP).
The VSP issued a statement saying that the crash occurred at 9:42 a.m. on Route 23 near the 60 mile marker.
A tractor-trailer was reportedly heading south on the highway when it ran off the road.
As of noon Friday, the VSP reported one confirmed fatality.
The Virginia Department of Transportation’s 511 Traffic Map shows lane closures still in effect in the area of the crash as of noon.
The crash remains under investigation. | https://www.wjhl.com/news/local/vsp-1-confirmed-dead-after-wise-co-tractor-trailer-crash/ | 2023-06-23T17:26:25 | 0 | https://www.wjhl.com/news/local/vsp-1-confirmed-dead-after-wise-co-tractor-trailer-crash/ |
SPRINGDALE, Ark. — The Marshallese Farmers Market is set to kick off this Saturday, June 24, in Springdale.
The event will be from 9 a.m. to noon at the Jones Center located at 922 East Emma Avenue.
There will be food, crafts, music, a "cooking demo with a taste test," and prizes.
The Arkansas Coalition of Marshallese and the Marshallese Educational Initiative will be present with their booths to share information.
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To report a typo or grammatical error, please email KFSMDigitalTeam@tegna.com and detail which story you're referring to. | https://www.5newsonline.com/article/news/local/marshallese-farmers-market-springdale-jones-center/527-8ed9af79-f7a0-4bd2-baa6-329baea07832 | 2023-06-23T17:30:18 | 0 | https://www.5newsonline.com/article/news/local/marshallese-farmers-market-springdale-jones-center/527-8ed9af79-f7a0-4bd2-baa6-329baea07832 |
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration is recommending the use of updated COVID-19 vaccines for the fall, saying the vaccine composition should be updated to a monovalent COVID-19 vaccine with an XBB-lineage of the Omicron variant.
The FDA, after taking into consideration the COVID variants in circulation and immune response data, advised manufacturers they should develop vaccines with a monovalent XBB 1.5 composition.
What local experts say
Local health departments are continuing to offer the bivalent booster and encouraging local residents to get vaccinated, while also reporting a drop in interest in the vaccines.
“What we’re doing right now is continuing to offer the bivalent vaccine here in the clinic and to recommend that people who haven’t gotten the bivalent booster to get the bivalent boost to protect against severe illness and hospitalizations,” said Dr. Becky Thomas, medical director at Public Health – Dayton and Montgomery County.
The challenge now is learning to live with COVID on a regular basis as the virus hasn’t settled into a predictable seasonal pattern like with influenza, Thomas said.
“This new vaccine that’s coming out will be a closer match to the circulating variants that we see in the community now and the ones that are predicted to be prevalent in the fall and then the winter when people gather more indoors,” Thomas said.
The Clark County Combined Health District is also watching for updates on fall COVID vaccines.
“However, it’s still too early yet for us to determine whether we’ll have these new vaccines available come later on this fall or not, as there are a number of logistical and procedural considerations as it relates to getting the new formula from the state of Ohio,” said Nate Smith, communications coordinator for the Clark County Combined Health District.
“Greene County Public Health continues to provide COVID-19 vaccines to those wishing to receive them and encourages residents to stay up to date on recommended vaccines,” said Laurie Fox, public information officer of Greene County Public Health. They also encourage those age 65 and older to get a second bivalent (updated) booster at least four months after receiving their initial bivalent booster.
Butler County has seen a decrease in demand for the COVID vaccine, especially compared to previous years, said Erin Smiley, health promotion director for the Butler County General Health District.
It was a decrease the health district expected due to local residents having gained immunity from natural infections, vaccinations, or both, but immunity can wane overtime, Smiley said.
“The data is clear that the COVID vaccine are effective at protecting people from getting seriously ill, but that immunity decreases over time. In order to keep cases low and prevent a spike in the fall and winter, it will be important that people stay up to date with the bivalent booster,” Smiley said.
The Butler County General Health District is offering adult vaccine clinics on Tuesdays and Thursdays from 9-11 a.m. and 1–3 p.m. The district also offers regular childhood vaccine clinics every Monday and Wednesday, as well as a Back to School Clinic for eligible children on Aug. 25 from noon to 4 p.m. at the Butler County Educational Service Center.
Year-to-year comparisons
Ohio has seen a dramatic difference this year compared to the same time frame last year, with 132,826 COVID cases representing only about 18% of what Ohio saw during this same time frame in 2022 between Jan. 1 and June 21. In that time range in 2022, there were 738,056 cases, according to the Ohio Department of Health.
“We’re very pleased that the numbers are much lower than they were this time last year,” Thomas said.
Locally, Montgomery County has seen approximately 6,858 cases between the beginning of the year to Wednesday, June 21, compared to 39,836 in the same time frame in 2022. Other counties saw similar drops, according to state data.
“COVID transmission, hospitalizations and deaths are all down compared to this time last year,” Smith said. Clark County went from approximately 10,000 cases in the first six months of 2022 to only more than 1,000 cases in the same time frame in 2023.
Butler County also dropped from approximately 30,000 cases in the first six months of 2022 to slight more than 4,000 in the first six months of 2023.
“Daily cases of COVID-19 have been on a steady decline since June 2022 when they were in double and triple digits; now as of June 20, cases in Greene County are down to four to five cases per day. The availability of vaccine throughout the region has helped with this decrease in daily cases,” said Fox.
Since more people have access to at-home tests, public health officials suspect the number of cases may be higher than what is reported. Immunity gained from vaccination and/or infections is also contributing to lower numbers.
“Population wise, I think we’re seeing a high degree of immunity from the people who have had the infection and people who have immunized. Those two things together are resulting in much lower numbers,” Thomas said.
The latest strains of the virus have also been less infectious than previous strains.
“Another point is that recent mutations of the virus, including subsequent strains of the Omicron variant are less virulent than previous strains,” Smith said.
Vaccinations are still stressed as the most important tool in avoiding catching COVID.
“Vaccination is still the best way to protect yourself,” said Dan Suffoletto, public information manager at Public Health – Dayton & Montgomery County. “If you haven’t been vaccinated at all yet, there’s still time.”
About the Author | https://www.springfieldnewssun.com/local/ohio-covid-cases-dramatically-down-see-what-vaccine-fda-is-recommending-in-fall/VYLJ7NIULZFINDMOLE5P6UPFYA/ | 2023-06-23T17:34:51 | 1 | https://www.springfieldnewssun.com/local/ohio-covid-cases-dramatically-down-see-what-vaccine-fda-is-recommending-in-fall/VYLJ7NIULZFINDMOLE5P6UPFYA/ |
Planning board OKs scaled-back plan for Deeson Road development. But neighbors appeal
The Polk County Planning Commission earlier this month approved a once-rejected, but scaled back proposal for 147 along Deeson Road. But residents along the rural Kathleen-area road have challenged the panel’s decision and requested a hearing with the Polk County Commission.
“My neighbors and I have submitted a de novo (hearing) request to challenge the ruling," said Michelle L. Crawford, a resident on nearby Robbins Road, in a phone message on Tuesday. She said the hearing has been scheduled for Aug. 22.
At the June 7 Planning Commission meeting, the board voted 5-2 to approve the application by Eric Swanson of Swan Capital Partners LLC for 147 homes along Deeson Road with board members Brooke Agnini and Tommy Addison opposed.
Swan Capital's plans were a significant reduction in the number of lots – by almost 100 – from a previous unsuccessful plan. The original plans put forth by Swanson called for 242 single-family homes on nearly 120 acres at 4235 Deeson Road.
In his latest proposal, Swanson had asked the Planning Commission to approve a Suburban Planned Development for 147 single-family lots with reduced lot sizes, reduced setbacks and increased density in a Residential Suburban Land Use district and Suburban Development Area on uplands with 117.68 acres of land that is mostly pasture, a sod farm and wetlands.
The property is located west of Kathleen Road, east of Payne Road and south of 1st Street Northwest in Kathleen, a county staff report said.
In his testimony, Swanson said his project's impact would be well below what's allowed in the county’s current land codes and its comprehensive plan.
“One of the objectives of my company when I started this a few years back was to design and develop healthy communities,” Swanson said.
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“A healthy community, and I think it is a little subjective, but for me it's pedestrian safety, it's walkable, it incorporates smart growth and complete sustainable design principles, and this is what this project highlights,” he said.
He called the growth happening in the Kathleen area exciting. There is a hospital being built at Kathleen Road and Interstate 4 about eight minutes away and a new fire station within three minutes, he said, adding police response time is 11 minutes to the proposed development.
He cited approved or newly constructed home developments since 2019 within a one-mile radius of his subdivision, including the Knights Landing, Ross Creek and Baker developments.
The Deeson Road development would add to Polk County's workforce housing inventory by targeting potential new home buyers such as teachers and first responders with household incomes at 80% to 120% of the area's median household income level, Swanson said.
During public comments, Crawford and her neighbors countered Swanson saying his project was incompatible and would leave local streets and pastures flooded with stormwater runoff.
Some complained the schools in Kathleen are already failing and more residents would overburden an already struggling school system.
A check with Florida Department of Education shows that Kathleen middle and high school received C grades in 2022 school year. The elementary school did receive a D grade last year, and all three schools received a D grade as recently as 2017.
Crawford’s family has lived and worked on the land in her area of rural Kathleen for 120 years and for several generations. She spoke about the development’s incompatibility.
“My neighbors and I love the rural character of our community,” she said. “Although many changes are happening in our hometown, we acknowledge the importance of preserving our humble way of life and sustaining the environment for future generations.”
She also said the lots may be fewer in Swanson’s plans this time around, but the sizes of the lots are still the same as they were before, and the previous plans were denied a year ago because of incompatibility.
The Polk County land development division received 37 letters in opposition to the proposed new subdivision and one letter in favor, a county staff report said.
The Kathleen area has experienced a recent boom in growth with the widening of Kathleen Road and the extension of centralized utilities, staff said. There are also mass transit routes to the proposed development.
The staff found enough capacity for anticipated traffic, saying the CSX crossings were recently upgraded and a traffic signal is coming to Kathleen at Deeson road.
Swanson added that the proposed subdivision, named Meadowbrook, would have a right turn lane and Deeson Road along the development would be widened and sidewalks installed. There would be a single entrance to the subdivision along Deeson Road.
The development would be within the Northwest Regional Utilities Service Area. The developer would pay for water and wastewater extension to the subdivision, and fire hydrants would be added.
Hunt Fountain Regional Park is about two miles east at 2020 Duff Road.
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The nearly 118 acres contains about 97 acres of uplands within a closed basin where the Blackwater Creek flows and subjects the land to periodic flooding, especially in the eastern corner of the site, which cannot be developed, staff said.
The land once had been approved for 256 mobile home lots in late-1980s but the approval expired last year. Also last year, Swanson had applied to place 242 single-family home lots on the land but that was denied by the Planning Commission.
In the current plan, lots would be 50 to 60 feet wide with side setbacks at 7.5 feet and a minimum size of 5,750-square-feet per lot, staff said. The layout clusters the lots toward the southwest corner of the site away from the floodway and wetlands. The land without homes – about 70% of the buildable land – would be open space but would retain the developer’s current right to build one home per five acres. About 20 acres have been identified as wetlands.
Even if the Planning Commission’s decision is upheld in the August hearing, the developer would have to clear reviews of the stormwater plans, school concurrency and other regulations. | https://www.theledger.com/story/news/local/2023/06/23/planning-board-oks-147-homes-on-deeson-road-but-neighbors-appeal/70341586007/ | 2023-06-23T17:38:22 | 0 | https://www.theledger.com/story/news/local/2023/06/23/planning-board-oks-147-homes-on-deeson-road-but-neighbors-appeal/70341586007/ |
Polk County immigrant group plans march and forum Saturday to protest new state law
Young American Dreamers, an immigrant advocacy group based in Polk County, plans to hold a march and forum on Saturday to protest recent adopted legislation.
The gathering, billed as “Peace March: United Against SB 1718,” will begin at the U.S. 17 bridge in Winter Haven at 11 a.m. and proceed to the Mission of Guadalupe in Wahneta. The “Know Your Rights” forum is scheduled for 3 p.m. at the Mission.
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Young American Dreams is protesting SB 1718, passed this year by the Florida Legislature and signed into law by Gov. Ron DeSantis. The law requires businesses with 25 or more employees to verify the legal status of workers, invalidates the use of out-of-state driver licenses by undocumented immigrants and directs hospitals to ask patients about their citizenship status, among other provisions. | https://www.theledger.com/story/news/local/2023/06/23/polk-county-immigrant-group-plans-march-and-forum-to-protest-new-law/70341570007/ | 2023-06-23T17:38:23 | 1 | https://www.theledger.com/story/news/local/2023/06/23/polk-county-immigrant-group-plans-march-and-forum-to-protest-new-law/70341570007/ |
As new law looms, some undocumented immigrants in Polk County plan to flee Florida
Some fear loss of driving privileges, workplace raids
AUBURNDALE — Gelasio Geronimo is an established resident of Polk County, a crew leader for his employer, a husband and a father.
His daughter is scheduled to enter her senior year at Auburndale High School in the fall, and his son is an incoming freshman. Until recently, the family lived a stable life.
But the situation has changed to the point that Geronimo and his family will be fleeing Polk County and Florida before July 1. That is the day that SB 1718, the state’s most consequential immigration law in years, takes effect.
The law, signed by Gov. Ron DeSantis and supported by all six of Polk County’s legislators, imposes new rules for verifying legal status upon businesses with 25 or more employees. The law also invalidates driver’s licenses from 19 states that issue them to undocumented immigrants, bans anyone from transporting an unauthorized resident into the state and requires hospitals to ask patients about their citizenship status.
Geronimo, 41, is an undocumented immigrant from Mexico, as is his wife. He said he has lived in the United States for 21 years and in Polk County for the past seven. His children are American citizens, having been born in the country.
Geronimo holds a driver’s license from Washington, the state in which he resided for a decade. That is one of the states that issue licenses to undocumented residents. He spoke recently to a Ledger reporter at the Auburndale home of Hilario Barajas, a nationally known immigrant advocate who once hosted the late labor leader Cesar Chavez in his home. Barajas translated Geronimo’s answers from Spanish.
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Geronimo said he and other local immigrants began hearing about proposed legislation in January. He said he serves as the driver and crew chief for a company that provides irrigation service for citrus groves.
“He says the whole job depends on his driver license,” Barajas said. “His driver license is from Washington, and you know what the bill says.”
Geronimo at first indicated that he planned to cease driving before July 1. But then it became clear that he and his family will be taking more drastic action in response to the law.
He and his family will relocate either to Georgia, where his wife has relatives, or to Washington state, a prospect that Geronimo said caused him sadness. He said he had been preparing his two children for the possibility.
“They were watching the news, and he was explaining to them what was happening from the beginning,” Barajas said. “It was a proposal on the bill, and then came a bill and now it's going to be the day that it’s going to be in effect. So he's been explaining everything to them.”
Estevan Geronimo, 14, joined his father at Barajas’ home. He spoke in subdued tones about the family’s imminent departure.
“I got worried because it's like starting a new life,” Estevan said of his parents’ decision. “I don't want to. I want to stay here.”
Geronimo said he knows of other undocumented immigrants who plan to depart Florida because of SB 1718. He said a “patron,” or boss, with his company spoke to a group of employees and urged them not to leave, telling them they would not be affected by the new law.
Asked if he believed that, Geronimo answered, “No.”
SB 1718 empowers state agencies to to conduct random audits of businesses and imposes daily fines for companies that fail to comply with the E-Verify guidelines.
Legislator proud of law
Anecdotal reports have arisen in Polk County and throughout Florida of undocumented immigrants leaving the state. Some construction sites have gone idle, apparently because of a lack of workers, though it’s impossible to confirm that the dynamic is a direct result of SB 1718.
Some local business owners who say they have been affected were not willing to speak on the record.
Florida’s workforce includes nearly 800,000 undocumented residents, according to a 2019 report by the Migration Policy Institute. It estimated that nearly one in four construction workers is undocumented. Another report found that 42% of Florida’s farmworkers are undocumented, according to the American Immigration Lawyers Association.
Sen. Ben Albritton, R-Wauchula, joined Polk County’s other five legislators in voting for the measure, which easily passed both houses. Albritton, the Senate majority leader, is an agribusiness owner and well connected in agriculture.
Albritton said he doesn’t expect the new law to cause a mass departure of agriculture workers. He said he had heard “very little” discussion of that possibility from others in the industry.
Albritton said that “the vast majority” of Florida’s agricultural employees are covered by the federal H-2A program, which allows citizens of other countries to work here legally. Under the program, businesses use the guest workers for temporary or seasonal labor if they anticipate shortages of citizen workers.
“I have not been hearing of it specifically in the agricultural space,” Albritton said of worker departures. “So, no, I think that may just be anecdotal. It may be gaslighting.”
Albritton and other Republican leaders say that SB 1718 is necessary because the Biden Administration has failed to control the flow of illegal immigrants across the Mexican border.
“What I believe is that, because the federal government has not done a good job of managing the process by which somebody can come into this country in a documented fashion, Florida took a stance this year that we want to follow the law,” Albritton said. “And that's what you're seeing. So, at the end of the day, we will see what the actual effects — not the hypothetical or, you know, you can use whatever adjective you want — effects of this (are). We'll see it in the future and we'll understand what the implications are going to be like. But at the end of the day, I'm proud of Florida taking the stand against illegal immigration and doing everything in our power to make sure that Floridians are doing the right thing and following the law.”
Lawyer: Anxieties running high
Ivelisse De la Fe, an immigration lawyer in Lakeland, said the period since the Legislature passed the bill on May 2 has been the most hectic of her 13-year career.
“I've just never been this extremely busy with people calling, just freaking out,” she said. “Everyone is asking about their options, whether they're going to have to be moving out of state. People are planning to leave and just very, extremely anxious and concerned because of the new bill that starts July 1.”
Nicole Leon, executive director of Justice for Our Neighbors, a nonprofit ministry of the United Methodist Church, told a similar story.
“The two days after SB 1718 was passed by the House, I received over 300 calls for service,” Leon said. “The majority of the calls were people, undocumented, trying to file any kind of paperwork that they can, even though I told them, ‘This doesn't really give you status yet, or it doesn't even show the status.’ They didn't care. They were like, ‘I want to file anything I can anything in the books.’”
Leon said that some of her clients moved from Florida well before the law was due to take effect.
“Now, funnily enough, they're moving to states like Mississippi, Alabama and Georgia, which are probably going to follow Florida's pathway because that's usually how it ends up going,” she said.
In addition to calls from immigrants, De la Fe said she has received calls from owners of businesses that employ unauthorized residents.
“The employers are concerned because a big chunk of their employees are saying, ‘We're leaving,’” De la Fe said. “It’s concerning people that have been working for them for 10 years, for 15 years, good employees, not the ones that you just get for temporary jobs for a little bit, but a lot of long-time employees.”
If an employee is already in the country without authorization, it isn’t possible for a company to seek an H-2A visa, she said.
Leon said she attended a banquet for her son’s baseball team around the time the bill passed, and she heard from business owners nervous about its possible effects.
“Some of the members there owned construction businesses, and these are very conservative business owners, and they were very concerned about this law and the effects that it would have,” Leon said. “They were already being told by their subcontractors that they wouldn't be able to finish your job.”
De la Fe said she had a consultation with an unauthorized immigrant in Polk County who said he was quitting his job of 15 years rather than risk being caught in a raid.
“He said, ‘I don't want them coming here and embarrassing me in my place of work, and I'd rather leave now while I'm on their good (side),” De la Fe said.
Misinformation adds to fears
Another immigration attorney, Alison Foley-Rothrock of Lakeland, said that SB 1718 has caused a frenzied reaction.
“All of my clients are in an absolute panic, both people who are U.S. citizens married to people who don't have their papers or we're working on getting their papers, and, of course, anybody who doesn't have their papers in order,” she said. “Just absolutely everyone is in a panic over it.”
Foley-Rothrock said she has talked to business owners in construction, agriculture and service industries who are worried about losing workers.
“It’s going to impact pretty much all aspects of life in Florida and the economy, which is what really kills me because the Republicans sort of harp on how everything is about the economy,” she said.
Republicans have supermajorities in both houses of the Legislature, and DeSantis is a Republican candidate for president.
Leon said that some undocumented immigrants are vulnerable to misinformation because they don’t speak English well and don’t always get accurate information about the workings of Florida’s government. She said some unscrupulous actors, often working as “notaries,” are eager to prey on the immigrants’ fears.
“The majority of the people calling were saying that they saw the information that they had on Tik Tok videos,” Leon said. “So that's a little concerning.”
She said some clients have left for other states even though they have pending immigration cases that would require them to return.
“So my concern is that they're putting themselves at greater risk by leaving the state and then having to come back to attend their interviews,” Leon said.
De la Fe agreed that details are sometimes “lost in translation” as they reach the immigrant population.
“So we're just here trying to inform the community so that they are prepared, trying to support them and provide them with a lot of accurate information and analyze their specific cases,” she said.
Immigrants and advocates throughout Florida staged a protest in early June called “A Day Without Immigrants.” Some construction and agriculture workers stayed home, while some businesses closed for the day in a show of solidarity. De la Fe said that several Polk County businesses took part, mostly restaurants and Latino markets.
Advocates worry about profiling
An early draft of the new law would have made it illegal to transport an unauthorized immigrant within Florida, a provision that could have created chaos for families with mixed legal status and for advocacy groups, including churches. Under the version signed by DeSantis, it is a felony to “knowingly and willfully” transport an undocumented immigrant into Florida.
“It’s a scary situation for many people, especially people who are American, period, who were born in this country, whether they're Anglo, African-American, Asian, and they happen to be married to someone who is from South America or Central America,” said Ana Rivera, president and CEO of the Puerto Rican/Hispanic Chamber of Commerce of Polk County. “They're scared for their family to be separated, and that's not a Christian thing. I'm a Roman Catholic, and I'm aghast at what's going on.”
The law also negates driver licenses from states, such as Washington, that issue them to non-citizens. Leon said that raises the potential for ethnic profiling of drivers by law-enforcement agencies.
She said she has a client in Wahneta, a largely Hispanic community of Polk County, who recently became a U.S. citizen and reports frequently being stopped by law enforcement on flimsy pretenses.
“I think it's only going to embolden law enforcement to stop people based on the color of their skin or if they look Hispanic,” Leon said.
Scott Wilder, a spokesperson for the Polk County Sheriff’s Office, shared an order from 2016 that forbids bias-based policing.
“By policy and training, we do not profile,” Wilder said by email. “We have a great relationship with all our communities, including the Latino community. We are not an immigration enforcement agency. We don’t determine who is in the country legally or not. We just enforce the law. We interact daily with foreign born Latinos, Hispanics, and other foreign-born visitors and residents — we treat everyone fairly and with empathy.”
The new law requires the Florida Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles to maintain a database listing the classes of out-of-state driver licenses that are invalid in the state. Driving with one of the invalid licenses becomes a misdemeanor, and the driver could be arrested and taken into custody, based on the discretion of the officer and the policy of the agency, Wilder said.
“We (PCSO) do not have a formal policy regarding this particular new statute yet,” Wilder wrote.
Wilder said the Sheriff’s Office will have no role in investigating complaints about businesses employing unauthorized immigrants, an area under the jurisdiction of state agencies.
'Nothing but pawns'
Daniel Barajas, Hilario’s son and the executive director of Young American Dreamers, said the new law evokes the period when former Gov. Rick Scott pushed Florida companies to use E-Verify, a federal database for checking workers' legal status, following his election in 2010. Scott abandoned that effort after intense lobbying from leaders of agriculture companies.
“This is happening all over again,” Barajas said. “The biggest concern, of course, is just the constant attack on the immigrant communities versus searching for solutions. You have families that have lived here for decades and never got in trouble. All they're trying to do is work. And then now is, once again, the witch hunt. It’s become literally a political witch hunt. They're nothing but pawns.”
While condemning Florida’s Republican leadership, Barajas said immigrants also feel betrayed by Democrats, who in his view have not done enough to oppose SB 1718.
Barajas said he knows migrant farm laborers who normally leave Florida in the spring to work crops in other states. He said some have told him they don’t plan to return as they normally would by the fall.
Rivera said a friend recently questioned whether the Florida Strawberry Festival could be canceled next year if the workers who pick the fruit all flee the state.
“You're looking at every single type of produce that's grown in this state,” Rivera said. “And it’s going to affect people, businesses, the small, mom-and-pop grocery stores to the larger grocery stores.”
As he sat with Geronimo and his teenage son, Hilario Barajas said that it’s difficult to explain to children what is happening with the changes in Florida law. Barajas, 73, then acknowledged that the crackdown on immigrant laborers makes no sense to him, either.
“My way of seeing this is it’s just racist,” he said. “They don't have no point on this. I mean, the state is losing, so what's the point? Everybody's losing — the workers, the farmers, the companies, the growers. Everybody's losing. So what’s the point? I mean, I would like to see somebody explain what was the purpose of it.”
Gary White can be reached at gary.white@theledger.com or 863-802-7518. Follow on Twitter @garywhite13. | https://www.theledger.com/story/news/local/2023/06/23/some-of-polks-undocumented-immigrants-fleeing-florida-over-new-law/70339371007/ | 2023-06-23T17:38:23 | 1 | https://www.theledger.com/story/news/local/2023/06/23/some-of-polks-undocumented-immigrants-fleeing-florida-over-new-law/70339371007/ |
Hospitals required to begin asking patients about legal status on July 1
Starting July 1, the admission forms at Florida hospitals will include a section asking if the patient is a U.S. citizen or lawfully present in the country.
Immigrant advocates worry that the provision might scare undocumented residents away from seeking needed care, even though the forms will state that the response will not affect patient care or generate a report to immigration authorities.
Under SB 1718, all hospitals that accept Medicaid reimbursements must gather the responses and submit quarterly reports with their figures to the Florida Agency for Health Care Administration. The reports will not contain personal patient information, the law says.
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The state agency will provide annual reports to the governor and Florida Legislature, with estimates of the cost of uncompensated care for people who are not legal residents and a summary of the impact of uncompensated care on the ability of hospitals to provide services to the public.
Asked about the new law, representatives of Lakeland Regional Health and BayCare, which owns hospitals in Winter Haven and Bartow, said their hospitals will fully comply with the requirements. BayCare is adding the required language to electronic and paper intake forms, spokesperson Nafari Morris said.
The forms will be available in English and Spanish, and BayCare staff will accommodate speakers of other languages, Morris said.
Daniel Barajas, executive director of Young American Dreamers, an immigrant-advocate group based in Auburndale, said he has been fielding questions from unauthorized residents about the hospital forms.
“One of the concerns is, even though they're only doing it to track what the legislation says to track at the hospitals, who receives what?” Barajas said. “Because of sometimes the language barrier, people that are going in don't understand really why they're being asked.”
Barajas said he and other advocates are telling undocumented immigrants that they should decline to answer the question.
The law seems to anticipate that possibility. The text of the bill says the quarterly reports to the state agency will include figures for those who refuse to answer the question about legal status.
“We’re letting them know that even though the hospital may be required to ask after July 1, that they still have the right to decline to answer that and say, ‘Tell me what I have to say for my health care and that's it,’” Barajas said. “Immigration status doesn't matter.”
Nicole Leon, executive director of Justice for Our Neighbors, a nonprofit ministry of the United Methodist Church, said she worries that some undocumented immigrants may avoid seeking medical care out of fear that declining to answer the question will be considered an admission of their illegal status.
Leon emphasized that federal immigration agencies have long refrained from entering hospitals, schools and churches in enforcement actions. She also stressed that medical facilities and doctors cannot decline to provide care based on a response to the citizenship question.
Gary White can be reached at gary.white@theledger.com or 863-802-7518. Follow on Twitter @garywhite13. | https://www.theledger.com/story/news/local/2023/06/23/starting-july-1-hospitals-must-ask-patients-about-legal-status/70344083007/ | 2023-06-23T17:38:25 | 0 | https://www.theledger.com/story/news/local/2023/06/23/starting-july-1-hospitals-must-ask-patients-about-legal-status/70344083007/ |
DALLAS (KDAF) — Someone in San Angelo, TX is $25K richer this morning!
The Texas Lottery reports a $25,000 winning Cash Five ticket from Thursday’s drawing was sold in the city. “A $25,000 winning ticket for last night’s #CashFive drawing was sold in #SanAngelo! #TexasLottery#Texas.”
That ticket matched all five of the winning numbers from the June 22 drawing (5,10,13,18 and 23). The Quik Pick ticket was sold at 712 N Chadbourne St.
The lottery reminds players, “Tickets must be claimed no later than 180 days after the draw date.” | https://cw33.com/news/local/25-million-texas-lottery-winning-ticket-sold-find-out-where/ | 2023-06-23T17:38:45 | 0 | https://cw33.com/news/local/25-million-texas-lottery-winning-ticket-sold-find-out-where/ |
SHEFFIELD, Iowa — The man killed by a deputy in Iowa earlier this week was wielding a pellet gun, investigators said.
The Iowa Division of Criminal Investigation on Thursday identified the man killed as 30-year-old Matt Davis of Hampton, Iowa.
Franklin County deputies were called to a home Tuesday night on a report of a domestic dispute. Deputies said Davis was holding a handgun and when told to drop it, he refused and walked toward the deputies.
At that point, Davis allegedly pointed the gun at a passing vehicle and deputies shot Davis, who was struck once. He died at the scene. No officers were hurt.
Iowa State Patrol and DCI were asked to investigate, and determined that Davis' weapon was a pellet gun. DCI said the shooting was captured on the deputies' body cameras, but footage hasn't been released.
The investigation continues. | https://www.weareiowa.com/article/news/local/iowa-dci-investigation-fatal-shooting-pellet-gun-hampton/524-a2f7af43-2375-4d22-8d7e-f234a6ae4ce4 | 2023-06-23T17:56:10 | 0 | https://www.weareiowa.com/article/news/local/iowa-dci-investigation-fatal-shooting-pellet-gun-hampton/524-a2f7af43-2375-4d22-8d7e-f234a6ae4ce4 |
VOLUSIA COUNTY, Fla. – An 18-year-old man was arrested Thursday in Daytona Beach Shores, accused of stabbing his mother several times amid an argument over his life choices and their dog’s apparent health issues, according to an incident report.
An officer responding to the mother’s 911 call from the 3700 block of S Atlantic Avenue reported locating her son — identified as Charles Soutier — yards south of the scene, walking toward them with his hands in the air. Soutier complied during his arrest and detectives with the Daytona Beach Shores Department of Public Safety later heard his side of the story, the report states.
Soutier told detectives that he and his mother had argued the night before due to their dog having defecated on its pee pads, adding his mother told him that he needed to get his life together, according to the report. The argument “angered him to the point he wanted to stab her,” he allegedly said, as he described choosing the smallest knife from a knife block and placing it where he knew it would be at a later time, the report states.
Soutier said another argument between the two began Thursday, again concerning his life choices and the dog. As the mother told her son that he needed to tell her whenever the dog had diarrhea — referencing the dog’s medical issues and its need for medication — Soutier told police that he retrieved the knife from earlier and began stabbing her left shoulder, according to the report.
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Soutier described his mother screaming before stating he followed her up the stairs and said “I will (expletive) kill you,” police reported.
Once upstairs, the mother made contact with her other son, who she said applied a makeshift tourniquet to her arm. The brother walked downstairs and asked Soutier what he was doing, at which point Soutier then placed the knife on a counter and walked outside, the report states.
Soutier reportedly stabbed his mother three times, with her injuries comprised of a puncture wound near the base of her neck, a puncture wound to her left shoulder and another to her left arm, police said.
After being taken in for processing, Soutier told police that he premediated the stabbing, clarifying he intended to do it either after the three went out to dinner following Wednesday night’s argument or on Friday. Though he initially said that he wanted to scare his mother with the stabbing, he now advised he would have killed her if she fought back, police said.
Soutier was booked around 3 p.m. and faces a charge of attempted felony murder. He’s being held without bond by Volusia County Corrections, records show.
Get today’s headlines in minutes with Your Florida Daily: | https://www.clickorlando.com/news/local/2023/06/23/18-year-old-accused-of-stabbing-mother-in-argument-over-dogs-diarrhea-florida-police-say/ | 2023-06-23T17:57:22 | 0 | https://www.clickorlando.com/news/local/2023/06/23/18-year-old-accused-of-stabbing-mother-in-argument-over-dogs-diarrhea-florida-police-say/ |
WASHINGTON – A Central Florida man has agreed to a plea deal in connection with his alleged involvement in the attack on the U.S. Capitol.
Jeremy Christian Harrison was arrested by FBI agents in February after they reviewed surveillance footage which they said showed Harrison walking into the Capitol with two other men.
He appeared in Ocala’s federal court on Feb. 9 facing charges of entering a restricted building and disorderly conduct on Capitol grounds among other charges.
Investigators at the time said Harrison was very cooperative.
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On Friday, Harrison entered a guilty plea to demonstrating or parading on Capitol grounds in exchange for the rest of the charges being dropped.
Harrison will be sentenced at a later date.
Harrison’s arrest marked the 36th Central Florida prosecution in connection with the attack on the U.S. Capitol.
Get today’s headlines in minutes with Your Florida Daily: | https://www.clickorlando.com/news/local/2023/06/23/another-central-florida-man-takes-a-plea-in-capitol-attack-case/ | 2023-06-23T17:57:29 | 1 | https://www.clickorlando.com/news/local/2023/06/23/another-central-florida-man-takes-a-plea-in-capitol-attack-case/ |
LEESBURG, Fla. – A man was arrested Thursday after dumping gasoline and setting fire to the Leesburg Masonic Lodge last week because he was mad at what it stood for, an affidavit shows.
According to detectives, Luke Pratt, 22, was arrested after the fire that destroyed the fraternal organization’s building, located at 200 Richey Road off West Main Street, around 10:40 p.m. on June 14.
Surveillance video from that night shows Pratt approach the building with a gas can and baseball bat, investigators said. He then leaves the property and comes back minutes later, when flames were seen erupting from the building, according to the arrest affidavit.
During an investigation, detectives said they recovered explosive devices from Pratt’s home and discovered that he confessed to setting the fire to his family, after which he was committed under the Baker Act.
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Pratt then told detectives he had sat across the road from the building in the bowling alley parking lot, waiting until all the people inside the Masonic Lodge left before going over, smashing the door in with a baseball bat and dousing the entire property in gasoline, the affidavit reads.
Investigators said he then lit a fire with matches and left the scene, returning a few minutes later to ensure it was still burning.
Pratt admitted to setting fire to the building because “he is mad at what the Masonic Lodge stands for and he believes they are following him,” according to detectives.
Leesburg Fire Chief Joe Mera declared the building “a total loss” last week.
Pratt faces charges of arson to an unoccupied structure and burglary.
Get today’s headlines in minutes with Your Florida Daily: | https://www.clickorlando.com/news/local/2023/06/23/man-accused-of-torching-leesburg-masonic-lodge/ | 2023-06-23T17:57:35 | 1 | https://www.clickorlando.com/news/local/2023/06/23/man-accused-of-torching-leesburg-masonic-lodge/ |
ORANGE COUNTY, Fla. – With the start of the school year less than six weeks away, Orange County is hiring teachers for its early learning program.
A job fair was held Friday for Orange County Head Start, which offers early-childhood education and services to low-income families.
“The families have a need. We work with them to fulfill that need and also we prepare our children so they can go on to be lifelong positive students,” Senior Program Manager Avis McWhite said.
More than 40 positions were available to qualified applicants, including over two dozen teacher and classroom aide roles.
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Perla Santiago received the first job offer of the day.
“I’m so excited,” Santiago said. “I’ve been wanting to get into it. I’ve been preparing since last week.”
Santiago said she’s had a passion for teaching for several years and being part of Head Start will be a fulfilling experience.
“I was one of those children. I want to be that to them,” Santiago said. “I want them to know that they’re loved, that they’re cared for. That someone’s here for them.”
The Head Start program is an early education program that is free and teaches students lessons for young children. It’s a full-day program that occurs during the regular public school year. Meals are also offered daily for students.
To be eligible, you must live in Orange County, have a child who will be 3 or 4 years old by Sept. 1, 2022, and your household income must be at or below 100% of federal poverty guidelines.
“It’s a comprehensive program,” White said. “It’s not only for the children, it’s for the families as well.”
For further details on how to apply for a position or apply to enroll in Head Start, call 407-836-6590 or click here.
Get today’s headlines in minutes with Your Florida Daily: | https://www.clickorlando.com/news/local/2023/06/23/orange-county-schools-hiring-teachers-for-early-childhood-program/ | 2023-06-23T17:57:41 | 1 | https://www.clickorlando.com/news/local/2023/06/23/orange-county-schools-hiring-teachers-for-early-childhood-program/ |
Detroit man charged with arson, assault after setting gas station on fire, injuring clerk
Detroit — A 35-year-old Detroit man accused of pouring gas in a local gas station and then setting it on fire, injuring the clerk inside, has been charged with arson, the Wayne County Prosecutor's Office announced.
Julian Waddell Miller of Detroit was arraigned on multiple charges in the city's 36th District Court, including assault, first-degree arson and malicious destruction of a building, Prosecutor Kym Worthy said in a news release.
The incident occured just before 3 a.m. Tuesday in the 19330 block of West Seven Mile Road near Evergreen Road. Miller allegedly entered the gas station on the city's west side, poured gasoline on the ground and lit it on fire, engulfing the gas station in flames and injuring the unidentified 27-year-old victim from Dearborn, the prosecutor said.
Upon arrival, crews from the Detroit Fire Department extinguished the fire and medics intercepted and transported the victim to a local hospital for treatment.
A police investigation led to Miller's arrest later the same day, Worthy said.
In a separate incident at another gas station last, a 57-year-old man allegedly set his car on fire. He was charged Thursday.
“This seems to be developing into another dangerous trend at Detroit area gas stations. It is a massive understatement to say that arson at a gas station is not a good idea," Worthy said. "We will vigorously prosecute anyone that is found responsible for this absurd behavior and will also explore necessary legislative changes to the law regarding arsons specifically at gas stations."
During a press conference Tuesday, Detroit Police Chief James White said the clerk, who was injured when Miller allegedly set the station on fire, was "expected to survive from his injuries," after showing partial surveillance video recordings of the incident.
Following his arraignment, Miller was given a $100,000 cash/surety bond with a GPS tether. A bond re-determination hearing is scheduled for June 26.
A probable cause conference is scheduled for June 30 and a preliminary examination is scheduled for July 7.
jaimery@detroitnews.com
Twitter: @wordsbyjakkar | https://www.detroitnews.com/story/news/local/detroit-city/2023/06/23/detroit-man-35-charged-with-first-degree-arson-assault-after-gas-station-clerk-set-afire/70350947007/ | 2023-06-23T17:58:56 | 0 | https://www.detroitnews.com/story/news/local/detroit-city/2023/06/23/detroit-man-35-charged-with-first-degree-arson-assault-after-gas-station-clerk-set-afire/70350947007/ |
MLK statue unveiled in Hart Plaza on 60th anniversary of first 'I Have a Dream' speech
Detroit ― Fourteen-year-old Zara Nunley recited Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.'s iconic "I Have a Dream" speech in Hart Plaza on Friday, the 60th anniversary of the day the civil rights leader delivered the speech for the first time in Detroit at then-Cobo Hall before heading to Washington, D.C.
The famous speech rings through the annals of time. On Friday, Detroiters celebrated it, along with the city's importance in the civil rights movement, with an unveiling of a 7-foot-tall statue of King at the podium. The statue will permanently live in Hart Plaza, steps from where King delivered the first speech, facing Canada.
On June 23, 1963, a crowd of 125,000 walked with King down Woodward Avenue to Detroit’s convention center, where he delivered the speech in an event called The Walk to Freedom.
The city was nearly 40% Black at the time, but Blacks were underrepresented in significant ways. Black officers made up less than 5% of the police department, for example. At the time, King hoped to inspire the end of segregation and discrimination. He practiced his speech at Detroit churches in Midtown like Second Baptist, which is still home to the final stop of the Underground Railroad before slaves reached freedom in Canada.
Famously, King first said he dreamed his four children could be raised in a world where they are judged on the content of their character and not the color of their skin. He was joined by Rev. C.L. Franklin, the father of Aretha Franklin, and then-mayor Jerome Cavanagh.
On Friday, his words were repeated by a Detroit high school student.
"I have a dream this afternoon that one day right here in Detroit, Negros will be able to buy a house or rent a house anywhere that their money will carry them, and they will be able to get a job,” read Nunley, a sophomore at Cass Technical High School. "...With this faith, I will go out with you to turn dark days into bright tomorrows."
The sculpture was crafted by artist Stan Watts, who convinced the owner to donate the piece to the city. He is also in the process of crafting a Rosa Parks statue, though it is unclear yet if that will also make its way home to Detroit.
"Honoring Dr. King gives us an opportunity to honor Detroit because sometimes we forget how bad a-- we are," said Rochelle Riley, the city's director of arts and culture, who secured the statue. "We have always been at the forefront of history being a major stop on the Underground Railroad, putting the world on wheels, saving the world as the arsenal of democracy, and Detroit played a major role in the civil rights movement that was not limited to the south. Of course, Dr. King would come to Detroit and with this monument, he will always be in Detroit."
In Detroit, monuments celebrating Black history have been lacking, Mayor Mike Duggan said. He said it's why he hired the city's first historian, Jamon Jordan, and helped re-dedicate Chene Park as the Aretha Franklin Amphitheater and are building a 26-mile ring around the city dedicated to fighter Joe Louis.
"We are going to celebrate our leaders," Duggan said. "After today, everyone that comes to the city's center will be reminded that this was the place where Dr. King gave the speech that defined the aspiration for America and be proud to be in this city."
Friday's unveiling kicks off a weekend of events planned by the Detroit NAACP branch, including a 60th anniversary march down Woodward Saturday and its Fight for Freedom Fund dinner Sunday.
More:Civil rights, other leaders to be honored at Detroit NAACP Fight for Freedom Fund dinner
Duggan was joined by the Rev. Wendell Anthony, president of Detroit's NAACP; Second Ebenezer Church Bishop Edgar Vann; Michigan Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson; State Sen. Erika Geiss; and City Council President Mary Sheffield for the event.
Anthony said notably, the Detroit chapter of the NAACP did not participate in the first Walk to Freedom. The group was ultra-conservative at the time, and King’s demands for governmental and societal respect and the immediate enactment of federal civil rights legislation was not aligned with the group.
"When I became president in 1993, the first thing we did was have a commemoration of the March down Woodward to regain and reconnect with Dr. King and we did," Anthony said. "We are still here. What we do today inspires others in future times. We are inspired and will inspire others."
Anthony introduced Benson, who said protestors converging on the Detroit convention center during the counting of ballots in the 2020 presidential election prompted her to advocate for the Michigan Voting Rights Act. The state act "which will restore and strengthen the rights of the federal voting rights act, co-sponsored with Geiss," she said.
Despite rain, the event was loud and joyous, with African drummers, a singalong of the Black national anthem "Lift Every Voice and Sing" and speeches by Dr. Mayowa Lisa Reynolds of Fellowship Chapel and Dr. Michael Eric Dyson.
"What a great day to be in Detroit and what a great day to be from Detroit," Dyson said. "Detroit is a magnificent spectacle of the process and progress of democracy and Dr. King came here first to work it out before he got to Washington, D.C. As people would soon understand, if you can do it in Detroit, you can do it anywhere."
srahal@detroitnews.com
Twitter: @SarahRahal_ | https://www.detroitnews.com/story/news/local/detroit-city/2023/06/23/mlk-statue-unveiled-in-hart-plaza-on-60th-anniversary-of-famous-speech-in-detroit/70336025007/ | 2023-06-23T17:59:02 | 1 | https://www.detroitnews.com/story/news/local/detroit-city/2023/06/23/mlk-statue-unveiled-in-hart-plaza-on-60th-anniversary-of-famous-speech-in-detroit/70336025007/ |
3 more victims, family members file intent to sue MSU after mass shooting
An attorney has filed notice of intent to sue to the Michigan Court of Claims on behalf of three Michigan State University students who were killed or injured in the Feb. 13 campus shooting.
Hanyang Tao and the families of Brian Fraser and Arielle Anderson filed the intent to sue in June, alleging MSU failed to properly maintain an emergency alert notification system and have a properly functioning access control system that could immediately lock all doors on campus if there was an active shooter.
Fraser and Anderson were shot and killed in Berkey Hall and Tao was injured. Tao was shot in the spine, resulting in his T2 vertebrae, rib and clavicle being fractured and a contusion to his lungs, according to the intent to sue. He will continue to receive extensive medical treatment for the rest of his life, according to the filing.
Similar to the intent to sue filed by attorneys of Alexandria Verner, the third student killed in Berkey Hall, attorney Ven Johnson said that Stephanie Anthony, vice chair of the Faculty Senate and Steering Committee, raised concerns in September 2022 at a planning meeting about whether more should be done to boost security at MSU. One other faculty member had raised concerns around that time as well, according to the intent to sue.
MSU Police Chief Marlon Lynch told Anthony that the wooden doors at Berkey Hall had access control systems on them that would allow them to be remotely locked, according to the intent to sue documents.
These systems did not work the night of the shooting, according to the intent to sue. Key card access also was deactivated before the shooting, which allowed unfettered access to campus buildings including Berkey and the Union. The locks in the classroom where Fraser, Anderson and Verner were shot and killed and Tao and four others were injured also weren't able to be deployed from the inside.
911 calls, dispatch logs paint harrowing picture of Michigan State shooting
"Many lives among our community have been profoundly impacted by the violence our campus experienced," MSU spokesman Dan Olsen said about the intent to sue. "We are heartbroken and sorry for the tragic loss of life and each person harmed by senseless gun violence. MSU has been engaged in conversations with the families of those we lost and those injured to identify ways to provide ongoing support, and we are committed to keeping those lines of communication open."
Johnson also noted that there were not metal detectors, security stations or armed security at Berkey or the Union, and that the emergency alert system failed to immediately and effectively notify all students about the active shooter. The surveillance system on campus also didn't provide real-time footage of the shooter, which delayed identification and apprehension, according to the intent to sue.
Seven of the eight students injured or killed on campus or their families have now filed their intent to sue MSU. Injured victims Nate Statly, Troy Forbush and John Hao, as well as Verner's family, all previously filed the paperwork.
kberg@detroitnews.com | https://www.detroitnews.com/story/news/local/michigan/2023/06/23/3-more-victims-family-members-file-intent-to-sue-msu-after-shooting/70350571007/ | 2023-06-23T17:59:08 | 0 | https://www.detroitnews.com/story/news/local/michigan/2023/06/23/3-more-victims-family-members-file-intent-to-sue-msu-after-shooting/70350571007/ |
Ann Arbor police won't stop drivers solely for minor offenses
Ann Arbor – In an effort to prevent racial profiling, police in Ann Arbor won't stop drivers for windshield cracks, loud exhaust, a burned-out taillight or other reasons unless there's a risk of harm.
“Our department should be seeking ways to keep the community safe without the appearance of disparate treatment,” interim Chief Aimee Mertzer said.
The city council in the college town is expected to give final approval in July to a similar “driving equality” ordinance, MLive.com reported. But Mertzer issued a statement Thursday making the changes immediate.
The chief said officers will not stop vehicles solely for any of 10 possible offenses that are related to the condition of the vehicle, such as tinted windows or the location of a registration sticker on the rear license plate.
Driving with a sticker that expired less than 60 days earlier won't be a reason to stop a car. A bad taillight is OK as long as the other one works.
Council Member Cynthia Harrison said she introduced an ordinance to change the emphasis of traffic stops.
“The vestiges of white supremacy remain embedded in our police forces, and Black and brown people continue to be disproportionately targeted," she said. | https://www.detroitnews.com/story/news/local/michigan/2023/06/23/ann-arbor-police-wont-stop-drivers-solely-for-minor-offenses/70351149007/ | 2023-06-23T17:59:14 | 1 | https://www.detroitnews.com/story/news/local/michigan/2023/06/23/ann-arbor-police-wont-stop-drivers-solely-for-minor-offenses/70351149007/ |
Local performers are coming to the stage at the Mingus Park amphitheater for two more free shows by Coos Bay Shakespeare in the Park.
Community members packed their blankets, lawn chairs and snacks and sprinkled themselves across the lawn to attend the free performance of Shakespeare’s “Much ado about nothing” on June 17 and 18. They will also be performing on June 22 and 23.
The cast blended the original “Much Ado About Nothing,” which was created in the late 1500s, with a modern day office setting.
In Messina, as Don Pedro, the Prince of Aragon, and his executive team return from a recent thwarting of a hostile takeover, a message comes to Leonato that the prince intends to visit his office for a month. The Duke’s party arrives with Count Claudio, who was attracted to Leonato’s only daughter, Hero. Another visitor is Benedick, a bachelor, who enjoys speaking his mind in witty argument with Hero’s cousin, Beatrice.
The audience could follow along with the story in a description provided by a program in the lively rendition of the popular Shakespeare tale.
Together, audience members watched to find out if Claudio and Hero would see through deception and still marry. Would Benedick and Beatrice eventually realize their love for one another, and would the family business be saved? The community was invited to find out in the live onstage performance at Mingus Park.
Coos Bay Shakespeare in the Park was formed to provide quality, live theatrical productions of Shakespeare’s works accessible to our community with an emphasis on those who would not otherwise have the opportunity. It is a collaborative effort among individuals who wish to create beautiful performing arts and educational opportunities in the local community.
Coos Bay Shakespeare in the Park has offered a free show on the stage in Mingus Park every summer since 2017.
Performers in the latest “Much Ado About Nothing,” theatrical cast include Chris Seldon as Benedick, Kristin Hovenkotter Greko as Beatrice, Gabriel Dresser as Claudio, Callista Weatherford as Hero, Julianna Seldon as Don Pedro, Gary Winterholler as Leonato, Josie Kuehn as Don John/Sexton, and many more. The play was directed by David Jordan and Kim Cox was the assistant director. | https://theworldlink.com/news/local/coos-bay-shakespeare-in-the-park-offers-free-outdoor-performances/article_1f2493b8-1142-11ee-b877-8fd490adea07.html | 2023-06-23T18:00:30 | 1 | https://theworldlink.com/news/local/coos-bay-shakespeare-in-the-park-offers-free-outdoor-performances/article_1f2493b8-1142-11ee-b877-8fd490adea07.html |
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On June 23, 2023, at 1:00 a.m. the Coos County Sheriff’s Office Dispatch Center received a 911 call of a hit and run near the intersection of Randolph Road and Seven Devils Road, just North of Bandon.
Bandon Police along with Deputies Starr and Davis responded. Bandon Police was able to locate the suspect vehicle which had subsequently crashed. Det. Davis investigated the incident.
Det. Davis learned the driver of the crashed vehicle was Jesse M. Dornath (29) of Bandon. Mr. Dornath admitted to drinking alcohol and eating psilocybin mushrooms. Mr. Dornath also stated he had a converted short-barrel rifle inside his vehicle.
After an investigation, Mr. Dornath was arrested on the charges of driving under the influence of intoxicants, hit and run with property damage, and felon in possession of a firearm.
Mr. Dornath is being referred on additional charges of unlawful possession of psilocybin and unlawful possession of a short-barreled rifle. | https://theworldlink.com/news/local/hit-and-run-crash-on-seven-devils-ends-with-bandon-man-s-arrest-on-several/article_6231542e-11de-11ee-93b0-7b404885f091.html | 2023-06-23T18:00:36 | 0 | https://theworldlink.com/news/local/hit-and-run-crash-on-seven-devils-ends-with-bandon-man-s-arrest-on-several/article_6231542e-11de-11ee-93b0-7b404885f091.html |
Café Patachou unveils plans for Fishers, seeks exception to city building rules
Café Patachou has submitted architectural plans for a one-story brick and glass diner next to the Nickel Plate Trail in Fishers.
The café will be in the spot of the old Nickel Plate Bar & Grill at 8654 E. 116th St., which was torn down after it closed in 2019. The diner will be 3,300 square feet with covered outdoor seating to the east and possible outdoor tables facing the trail to the west.
Patachou, owned by prominent Indianapolis restauranter Martha Hoover under the corporate name Won’t Stop Hospitality, first announced plans to open the restaurant in December 2002.
It will be called Café Nickel Plate Fishers, with the same breakfast and lunch menus as the company's other morning spots, a spokeswoman told the IndyStar at the time.
Hoover’s company has six restaurants under different names and menus around Indianapolis. Its seventh, a Café Patachou, is scheduled to open soon at the Stutz Building, 1060 N. Capital Ave., Indianapolis.
More:Own a piece of the old Nickel Plate diner in Fishers to help a charity
The Fishers Nickel Plate Review Committee will look over the company's plans during its June 28 meeting.
The restaurant is designed by DELV Design, Indianapolis, which also designed the Fishers Test Kitchen at the Fishers District and the Sun King Spirits distillery in Carmel’s Midtown.
The Fishers eatery will face a soon-to-be-built small park, called Legacy Plaza, and a two-story mural on the side of a rehabbed historical building.
The colorful mural, featuring historical and present-day Fishers landmarks, was unveiled this week at a city ribbon cutting.
Café Patachou seeks an exception to building code to stay 1-story
Patachou will seek an exception to the city’s building code, which requires structures in parts of the downtown Nickel Plate District to be at least three stories tall.
The lower building will prevent it from impeding the view of the mural, said Jack Reid, president of CRG Residential, the Patachou developer. Reid’s company rehabbed the building on which the mural is painted and one next to it. His family commissioned the $20,000 mural by local artists, the Wilkinson Brothers.
“There was a lot of consideration that went into the view of the mural,” he told IndyStar.
More:Familiar face flies high in newest Fishers mural
The Legacy Plaza will be what used to be the Nickel Plate diner’s parking lot. Patachou customers can park for free in the Nickel Plate Station lot. CRG is a partner in the 237-unit residential and commercial building behind the future Patachou.
Commercial tenants at Nickel Plate Station include Rush Bowl and Angelo’s Italian Market.
Call the reporter at 317-444-6418. | https://www.indystar.com/story/news/local/hamilton-county/fishers/2023/06/23/caf-patachou-fishers-seeks-exception-to-city-rules-for-fishers-location/70350581007/ | 2023-06-23T18:01:18 | 1 | https://www.indystar.com/story/news/local/hamilton-county/fishers/2023/06/23/caf-patachou-fishers-seeks-exception-to-city-rules-for-fishers-location/70350581007/ |
SACRAMENTO, Calif. — A portion of Measure O, also known as the Emergency Shelter and Enforcement Act of 2022, began Wednesday. It gives Sacramento residents a way to file reports of unlawful camping on public property and the city is required to respond to the report within 20 days.
Some people who filed a report say the city is doing the bare minimum and the system isn't addressing what they intended.
"I think outrage shouldn't be the right word," said Josh Wood, CEO of the Sacramento Region Business Association, who led the effort to get Measure O passed.
The swing of emotions comes after the city of Sacramento said they don't have to urgently respond to any of the new complaints submitted.
"The city says it's fulfilled its obligation,” said Wood. “Its obligation is fulfilled when our streets are safe and clean."
The portion of Measure O was supposed to compel the city to address complaints faster by filling out an online enforcement tool, but the city says they don't have to urgently respond to new reports. The mechanism designed for homeowners to contest the city’s decision requires hiring a hearing examiner.
"The entire measure depends on them hiring this one position that they refuse to hire,” said Wood. “This is intentional."
The last count conducted in early 2022 found more than 5,000 people were experiencing homelessness within Sacramento city limits.
"I was thinking that everything's going to change because this online form is available," said Sacramento resident John Morales.
Morales has lived in Sacramento for the past 30 years. He's one of 80 people who's filed a report in the last two days.
Morales says he and many others received an auto-reply message from the city.
“Because the City already has allocated more than the maximum amount required by the ESEA, it has met its obligations for fiscal year 2023/24 and is not required to fund additional services, such as the hiring of a hearing examiner and other components of the hearing and demand process."
The response isn't what people were expecting.
"Without this method to report people who are in need of assistance, the city's not going to come and address the problem,” said Morales. “And so, it's going to be the same old same old here in the neighborhood."
The city told ABC10 this week it's meeting the requirements of Measure O. Wood says they will take every step legally or politically to make sure the city follows through on Measure O.
The city says the new complaints filed will be routed to the Department of Community Response and they will get to them as quickly as possible.
The new 'Notice and Demand' report form for unlawful camping can be found and submitted HERE.
Watch more on ABC10: New affordable housing complex opens up in Sacramento | https://www.abc10.com/article/news/local/homeless-reporting-tool-criticized-by-measure-o-proponents/103-73bbb2c6-023b-4bea-974b-81ab7640a86a | 2023-06-23T18:06:17 | 1 | https://www.abc10.com/article/news/local/homeless-reporting-tool-criticized-by-measure-o-proponents/103-73bbb2c6-023b-4bea-974b-81ab7640a86a |
SACRAMENTO, Calif. — A pedestrian was hit and killed Friday in a crash on Highway 99 in Sacramento, according to California Highway Patrol.
The crash happened on southbound Highway 99, north of Cosumnes River Boulevard. Only the #3 lane is open, according to CHP.
There is no estimated time the other two lanes will be clear. | https://www.abc10.com/article/news/local/sacramento/pedestrian-killed-southbound-highway-99-sacramento/103-ca6693d7-9bb1-4e12-b0e3-3f3443233788 | 2023-06-23T18:06:23 | 1 | https://www.abc10.com/article/news/local/sacramento/pedestrian-killed-southbound-highway-99-sacramento/103-ca6693d7-9bb1-4e12-b0e3-3f3443233788 |
A 24-year-old man is in custody after a nearly three-hour standoff with law enforcement near South 13th and Van Dorn streets.
Lancaster County Sheriff Chief Deputy Ben Houchin said Gabriel Olivas, who has a history of violence and use of firearms, had refused to exit a home at 2672 S. 12th St.
The sheriff's department used a chemical agent in the basement and the second floor to smoke Olivas out onto the roof of the house at about 11 a.m. A woman, who was also inside the home, came out a door on the main level at about the same time. Neither had weapons on them, Houchin said. The woman was also arrested on a warrant.
Earlier, a 44-year-old man who came out of the house was arrested. Arthur Francis Jr. was taken into custody at about 10:30 a.m. for felony domestic assault, Houchin said.
It was unclear if any of the three lived in the home.
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Houchin said they were arrested without incident and no one was hurt.
"I wish we didn't have to enter the chemical agents, but they were not talking to us. ... So they were just sitting tight," Houchin said. "Instead of putting officers or a canine in danger, we entered gas into the residence to help get them extracted out."
Shortly after 11 a.m., Houchin said the house was cleared.
Olivas was being sought by Lincoln Police in connection with a robbery on Wednesday near 21st and Washington streets where he allegedly pushed a person out of their vehicle and used the car to flee police.
Houchin said there were also four misdemeanor warrants for Olivas on charges including theft by shoplifting, obstructing a peace officer and driving under suspension.
The standoff started around 8:30 a.m. Friday.
This is a developing story. Return to Journalstar.com for updates. | https://journalstar.com/news/local/crime-courts/man-and-two-others-arrested-after-standoff-in-south-lincoln/article_a2a5b116-11d0-11ee-9129-a31e3c0fee78.html | 2023-06-23T18:10:58 | 0 | https://journalstar.com/news/local/crime-courts/man-and-two-others-arrested-after-standoff-in-south-lincoln/article_a2a5b116-11d0-11ee-9129-a31e3c0fee78.html |
BESSEMER, Ala. (WIAT) — An inmate at William E. Donaldson Correctional Facility died Thursday, the Jefferson County Coroner’s Office reported.
The inmate, a 28-year-old man whose name has yet to be released, was reportedly found unresponsive in his cell at 6:55 a.m. Thursday. By 7:12 p.m., he was pronounced dead.
The coroner’s officer reports that while no cause of death has been determined, no signs of trauma or foul play have been found.
The inmate’s name has been withheld until his family has been notified. The Alabama Department of Corrections is investigating the circumstances surrounding his death. | https://www.cbs42.com/news/local/28-year-old-inmate-at-donaldson-correctional-facility-dies-after-being-found-unresponsive-in-cell/ | 2023-06-23T18:11:01 | 1 | https://www.cbs42.com/news/local/28-year-old-inmate-at-donaldson-correctional-facility-dies-after-being-found-unresponsive-in-cell/ |
BIRMINGHAM, Ala. (WIAT) — The Magic City Summer Festival will not take place as scheduled, according to the City of Birmingham on Friday.
The event was supposed to take place June 29 through July 2 at Legion Field. It was set to include carnival rides, game rooms, mini golf, inflatables and a food court. Magic City Summer Fest listed on its website the event has been moved to this fall. The promoter didn’t mention a reason behind the schedule change.
The event is designed to promote Legion Field, which has been in decline of use over the years with sports team moving to other stadiums who once played there. The goal, according to Magic City Summer Fest, was to “assist in restoring ‘The Old Grey Lady’ back to her prominence by hosting events that would being diverse communities together.”
The promoter will still host the Magic City Hoop Fest on June 29 at George W. Carver High School. | https://www.cbs42.com/news/local/magic-city-summer-festival-rescheduled-for-fall/ | 2023-06-23T18:11:07 | 1 | https://www.cbs42.com/news/local/magic-city-summer-festival-rescheduled-for-fall/ |
BLOOMINGTON — The Bloomington Police Department is asking for the public's help in finding a 17-year-old girl reported missing.
Lashawnda Williams, of Bloomington, was reported missing May 26 after leaving her residence and telling her family she was going to Peoria.
Williams is described as a Black female, approximately 5 feet 1 inch tall, and weighing 125 pounds. She has black hair and brown eyes. She was last seen wearing a colorful bonnet, black jacket, black pants and pink sandals.
Williams is known to frequently alter the color of her hair with the use of a wig. She has also been active on her social media accounts.
Cathy Hiser of Charleston, Chrissy Leitch of Mattoon, Evelyn Webb of Decatur, and Beth Covington of Mattoon look over a display of small quilts during the annual Outdoor Quilt Show on Saturday morning at Lytle Park in Mattoon.
Bloomington/Normal Modern Quilt Guild Membership Chair Noemi Bowers, at center, talks to Jan Booker of Charleston and Norma Himes of Mattoon about the guilds display of miniature quilts during the annual Outdoor Quilt Show on Saturday morning at Lytle Park in Mattoon.
Bloomington/Normal Modern Quilt Guild President Lisa Baermann, seated, takes viewers' choice nominations and raffle tickets from Debby Schoonover of Mattoon and Louise Duncan of Trowbridge during the annual Outdoor Quilt Show on Saturday morning at Lytle Park in Mattoon. The raffle was for the guild's 64-by-82-inch "Into the Light" quilt, seen behind them.
Jan Booker of Charleston talks about the adjacent student-made quilt during the annual Outdoor Quilt Show on Saturday morning at Lytle Park in Mattoon. Her son, Jason Booker, and his classmates at Mattoon's Columbian Elementary made this quilt for retiring teacher Jane Edgar in the early 1980s.
The Mattoon-based Prairie Stitchers and the Bloomington/Normal Modern Quilt Guild held their annual Outdoor Quilt Show on Saturday at Lytle Park in Mattoon.
Visitors walk through a corridor of quilt during the third annual Outdoor Quilt Show on Saturday at Lytle Park in Mattoon.
ROB STROUD, JG-TC
Cathy Hiser of Charleston, Chrissy Leitch of Mattoon, Evelyn Webb of Decatur, and Beth Covington of Mattoon look over a display of small quilts during the annual Outdoor Quilt Show on Saturday morning at Lytle Park in Mattoon.
ROB STROUD, JG-TC
Bloomington/Normal Modern Quilt Guild Membership Chair Noemi Bowers, at center, talks to Jan Booker of Charleston and Norma Himes of Mattoon about the guilds display of miniature quilts during the annual Outdoor Quilt Show on Saturday morning at Lytle Park in Mattoon.
ROB STROUD, JG-TC
Bloomington/Normal Modern Quilt Guild President Lisa Baermann, seated, takes viewers' choice nominations and raffle tickets from Debby Schoonover of Mattoon and Louise Duncan of Trowbridge during the annual Outdoor Quilt Show on Saturday morning at Lytle Park in Mattoon. The raffle was for the guild's 64-by-82-inch "Into the Light" quilt, seen behind them.
ROB STROUD, JG-TC
Jan Booker of Charleston talks about the adjacent student-made quilt during the annual Outdoor Quilt Show on Saturday morning at Lytle Park in Mattoon. Her son, Jason Booker, and his classmates at Mattoon's Columbian Elementary made this quilt for retiring teacher Jane Edgar in the early 1980s.
ROB STROUD, JG-TC
Contact Mateusz Janik at (309) 820-3234. Follow Mateusz on Twitter:@mjanik99 | https://pantagraph.com/news/local/accident-and-incident/bloomington-police-searching-for-missing-teen/article_9fc90dec-11e6-11ee-b607-7fa0027759b9.html | 2023-06-23T18:14:19 | 0 | https://pantagraph.com/news/local/accident-and-incident/bloomington-police-searching-for-missing-teen/article_9fc90dec-11e6-11ee-b607-7fa0027759b9.html |
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Dallas Morning News
The latest headlines from our media partners at The Dallas Morning News. | https://www.nbcdfw.com/news/local/dallas-morning-news/texas-ranks-49th-for-womens-health-in-new-state-by-state-scorecard/3283351/ | 2023-06-23T18:16:34 | 0 | https://www.nbcdfw.com/news/local/dallas-morning-news/texas-ranks-49th-for-womens-health-in-new-state-by-state-scorecard/3283351/ |
The Texas Supreme Court ruled Friday that ERCOT, the operator of Texas’ power grid, is a government entity, granting the organization immunity to lawsuits stemming from 2021′s deadly winter storm.
The Supreme Court ruled 5-4 on immunity, reversing a previous judgment from a Dallas state appeals court. Justices dismissed lawsuits from San Antonio’s municipal electric utility and a private energy developer.
The court ruled unanimously that ERCOT is a governmental entity, something the organization has waffled on in recent legal challenges. For instance, it claimed it was not a government entity when it was sued over Texas’ government open records law. ERCOT officials claimed it fell under government protection under the suits that were decided Friday.
ERCOT is the country’s sole power grid contained wholly within a single state. It encompasses roughly 75% of the state and maintains a grid providing electricity to 90% of Texas’ population. It is a government-created non-profit corporation that is regulated by the Public Utility Commission.
Because of this, ERCOT should be immune to suit because “it prevents the disruption of key governmental services, protects public funds, and respects separation of powers principles,” Chief Justice Nathan L. Hecht wrote for the majority.
“ERCOT’s governmental nature is demonstrated most prominently by the level of control and authority the state exercises over it and its accountability to the state,” Hecht’s ruling stated.
To read the full article, visit our partners at the Dallas Morning News. | https://www.nbcdfw.com/news/local/texas-news/ercot-cant-be-sued-over-deadly-2021-winter-storm-texas-supreme-court-rules/3283396/ | 2023-06-23T18:16:40 | 1 | https://www.nbcdfw.com/news/local/texas-news/ercot-cant-be-sued-over-deadly-2021-winter-storm-texas-supreme-court-rules/3283396/ |
A Texas real estate developer at the center of Attorney General Ken Paxton’s impeachment has pleaded not guilty to charges of making false statements to banks that loaned him more than $170 million.
Nate Paul waived his scheduled arraignment before a U.S. district judge in Austin, according to court documents posted Friday.
Paul figures heavily in 20 articles of impeachment filed against Texas’ top law enforcement officer. Paxton is accused of abusing his power and bribery in order to help Paul, who gave the Republican a $25,000 campaign donation in 2018.
There is no reference to Paxton in Paul’s indictment, which accuses the developer of making false statements to multiple banks in 2017 and 2018. But one of the banks later received a subpoena, issued in person, by an attorney Paxton hired as an “outside independent prosecutor” to pursue complaints Paul made after the FBI raided the businessman’s offices.
Paxton has denied wrongdoing and his impeachment trial is set to begin Sept. 5. | https://www.nbcdfw.com/news/local/texas-news/texas-businessman-at-center-of-ag-ken-paxtons-impeachment-pleads-not-guilty-to-federal-charges/3283406/ | 2023-06-23T18:16:46 | 0 | https://www.nbcdfw.com/news/local/texas-news/texas-businessman-at-center-of-ag-ken-paxtons-impeachment-pleads-not-guilty-to-federal-charges/3283406/ |
Looking out for #1 has meant stretching its borders east to Cambria County and westward into Boardman, Ohio, over the past eight months. But now Rob Cochran has notched a deal in his own backyard. Literally.
On Thursday, #1 Cochran, Pittsburgh’s largest and the nation’s 59th-biggest auto retailer, acquired Ford of Monroeville from Lithia Motors Inc. The store, located at 3696 William Penn Hwy., has been rebranded #1 Cochran Ford Monroeville, on the same side of the highway as #1 Cochran’s headquarters campus at 4520 William Penn Hwy. It now retails eight new vehicle brands in Monroeville.
Read more at Pittsburgh Business Times.
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©2023 Cox Media Group | https://www.wpxi.com/news/local/1-cochran-buys-ford-monroeville-lithia/GIS4AHC55RHKTBMA37QT3EYNWM/ | 2023-06-23T18:17:10 | 1 | https://www.wpxi.com/news/local/1-cochran-buys-ford-monroeville-lithia/GIS4AHC55RHKTBMA37QT3EYNWM/ |
The American Red Cross says a stable blood and platelet supply is critical to national preparedness.
Following a recent shortfall in donations, donors are especially needed over the upcoming holiday to make sure blood is available all summer long. That’s why it’s offering incentives right now to encourage people to donate blood. One of the incentives being offered through June 30 is a $10 dollar gift card.
“You get a $10 gift card to the merchant of your choice. We just email it to you and you get to choose if you want to use it on Amazon or whatever,” said Nicole Roschella of the American Red Cross of Greater Pennsylvania.
Those who donate blood will automatically be entered for a chance to win a backyard theater package. Anyone who comes to give blood, platelets, or plasma July 1 to 11 will receive an exclusive Red Cross dry bag, while supplies last.
The American Red Cross says donors of all types are needed, but especially Type B Negative or O Negative blood.
“Also if you can give platelets, that’s really helpful to cancer patients, but we need all blood types,” said Roschella.
Roschella says the biggest incentive is giving back.
“You know, the big incentive is just helping people that are in the hospital one hour of your day,” said Roschella.
To schedule an appointment to donate blood, download the Red Cross Blood Donor app, visit RedCrossBlood.org, or call 1800-RED-CROSS
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©2023 Cox Media Group | https://www.wpxi.com/news/local/following-recent-shortfall-donations-red-cross-offering-incentives-people-donate-blood/KC5JPKYI3NELBF6D7VOG6LMATA/ | 2023-06-23T18:17:16 | 0 | https://www.wpxi.com/news/local/following-recent-shortfall-donations-red-cross-offering-incentives-people-donate-blood/KC5JPKYI3NELBF6D7VOG6LMATA/ |
There’s been no substantial progress reported in a contract renewal negotiation between Cigna and Allegheny Health Network as the days count down to the June 30 end of the current one.
AHN, a division of Highmark Health, and Cigna have been negotiating for months and earlier this spring reached an impasse that led to the two sides providing notice of a potential unwinding. That would leave about 20,000 AHN patients who have Cigna insurance out of network for those services.
Negotiations were continuing, but it isn’t clear whether the two sides could reach a deal. Neither AHN nor Cigna reported any substantial progress. The contract covers AHN hospitals like Allegheny General and West Penn as well as some physician services.
Read more at Pittsburgh Business Times.
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©2023 Cox Media Group | https://www.wpxi.com/news/local/heres-latest-battle-between-ahn-cigna-over-new-contract/5S6EXOC5IJCYLCTRIBDEFOGFRY/ | 2023-06-23T18:17:22 | 1 | https://www.wpxi.com/news/local/heres-latest-battle-between-ahn-cigna-over-new-contract/5S6EXOC5IJCYLCTRIBDEFOGFRY/ |
FLINT, Mich. (WJRT) - Anticipation is building for the Wings Over Flint air show coming to Flint Bishop Airport this weekend.
From area businesses, to the citizens and even pilots are excited to see the show.
Jacob Carmer is a local Genesee County pilot, and works at Flint Bishop Airport in tech operations.
Carmer has always had a passion for aviation. It started when he was a child as his father was a member of the Air Force.
"In an airliner, you're up so high you can't really see anything," said Cramer. "When I'm flying around, I can, "hey, check out that lake" or "check this out" and we can actually do some sight-seeing while we're traveling places."
While Cramer is not at work, he can usually be found in his hanger working on planes or sharing his passion for planes with others. Cramer is the President of the Experimental Aircraft Association, which is a group of aviation enthusiasts.
"The biggest thing is me and my wife run the local chapter of the Young Eagles program, where kids get free airplane rides, and they get access to online training software," said Cramer. He wants others to feel the freedom he feels when flying.
Cramer explains that a lot of people believe that flying and aviation is only for the rich.
"I got with a local flying club, which is the cheapest way to get into Aviation," explains Cramer. "You don't have to own your own place. It's easy, there's a number of clubs around."
Cramer is excited for the Wings Over Flint airshow returning. He says that if he's not watching it as a guest, he will probably be monitoring the systems just in case with all the extra air traffic.
"Anything that's going to bring a positive light to the community, I think it's a great thing," said Cramer.
He adds that with all the air show that he's been to, he knows that they can lead to dreams taking off.
"It's stuff like that that really inspired me as a kid. It put me on the path that I'm on," explain Cramer. | https://www.abc12.com/news/local/local-pilot-shares-excitement-for-wings-over-flint/article_699a72c2-11d9-11ee-aab2-b7739e0a5c00.html | 2023-06-23T18:17:22 | 0 | https://www.abc12.com/news/local/local-pilot-shares-excitement-for-wings-over-flint/article_699a72c2-11d9-11ee-aab2-b7739e0a5c00.html |
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